With California alone requiring roughly 150,000 new megawatts to meet the state’s clean energy goals and keep the the lights on, how the energy sector can harness this increasing demand to accelerate deployment of emerging technologies is the focus the latest Pathways to Commercial Liftoff Topic Brief from the US Department of Energy.
CEC Vice Chair Siva Gunda discusses California's clean energy goals, emphasizing the need for 150,000 new megawatts to meet targets. He highlights the CEC's role in leveraging federal funds, including those from the Inflation Reduction Act, to support energy projects and coordinates with state agencies for efficient resource application. Gunda addresses challenges in grid reliability, affordability, and extensive planning. He highlights the importance of storage solutions, CCS, and hydrogen in achieving a balanced energy grid and underscores global collaborations, particularly with India, to enhance climate solutions and renewable energy efforts.
Caltech, which has long been at the forefront of science & innovation, has been investing for years in its campus’ sustainability. VX News spoke with John Onderdonk, working out of the Linde Center for Global Environmental Science, on his role as Caltech’s Assistant Vice President of Facilities Operations and Services at the campus and the many efforts underway to modernize their grid and prepare for the future realities of climate change. In the interview, Onderdonk speaks of the challenges of meeting the demands of a “small city” (Caltech) and the challenge of, literally, building the airplane while you’re flying it.