LS Power on May 8 announced it has reached an agreement with Brazos Electric Power Cooperative to acquire 2,145 megawatts of natural gas generation in the ERCOT North region of Texas through a special purpose affiliate.

The Pacific Northwest Utilities Conference Committee released its 2023 Northwest Regional Forecast on May 4, which projects a 20 percent increase in load over the next five years. This equates to roughly 4,000 average megawatts.

A new report from the Brattle Group finds that 60 gigawatts of virtual power plant deployment could meet future U.S. resource adequacy needs at $15–$35 billion less than the cost of the alternative options over the ensuing decade.

In a May 3 letter to Patricia Poppe, CEO of California investor-owned utility Pacific Gas & Electric, San Francisco officials including Dennis Herrera, General Manager of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, urged the utility to reconsider its position related to the city’s plan to buy PG&E’s grid assets, which would allow the city to become responsible for all electric distribution service within San Francisco’s boundaries.

Voters in El Paso, Texas, on May 6 rejected a proposal that included exploring the creation of a public power utility.

Energy from the Red Mesa Tapaha Solar Project in Utah is now available to members of Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems.