Clean Energy Needs a Clean Foundation: A Call for Grid Modernization in California

I’ve spent decades in the renewable energy business, designing, building, and commissioning everything from commercial solar PV to Hydrogen fuel cells. What I’ve seen in that time are the advancements, the challenges, and some hard truths about our energy transition. California gets a lot of credit for its solar energy growth, and it’s well deserved. But while this solar energy California expansion is great, it makes me wonder: are we truly investing enough in the crucial grid infrastructure needed for a stable California energy grid?

The Clock is Ticking: Ambitious Goals, But Is Our Grid Ready?

Let’s be clear: California has set tough, legal clean energy goals. We’re mandated to get 60% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2030, and 100% clean energy by 2045. These aren’t just hopes, they’re the law. But when I look at our current grid reliability, infrastructure, and energy management strategies, it brings up a basic question: Are our investments for the California energy grid truly preparing us to meet these clean energy targets reliably and affordably? Or are we risking future instability and higher costs by ignoring fundamental issues?

We’ve Had Real Wins, But Getting Energy on the Grid is Still Tough.

The benefits of our solar energy California boom are huge: massive power generation, less CO2, water conservation, innovation, and jobs. But these successes could easily turn into serious renewable energy challenges if we ignore the clear weaknesses in how we manage and deliver this energy.

The “Duck Curve”: What It Shows Us About Our Grid

The infamous “duck curve California” isn’t just some industry term. It shows up every day on the California energy grid, pointing out our operational inefficiencies and the clear grid limitations we face.

California Duck Curve 2018 - 2024

• Strain on Conventional Power Plants: When midday solar energy floods the California energy grid, our conventional power stations get stressed. We need these plants for grid reliability, but they aren’t designed for this kind of on-off use. They need time to ramp up and down. This constant cycling means more wear and tear, higher maintenance bills (potentially $0.47 to $1.28 more per MWh), and worse fuel efficiency. It’s a tough way to run vital energy infrastructure.

• Solar Curtailment: The direct result? We often have to cut off perfectly good, clean solar energy. We cut off over 2.4 million MWh in 2022, a figure we surpassed within eight months of 2023. This isn’t just wasted energy; it’s a lot of lost investment, and it directly conflicts with our stated clean energy goals California.

• The Issue of Negative Pricing: And then there’s the strange situation where we sometimes sell our excess power to neighboring states at negative energy prices. That’s not smart energy policy for California. It’s a real problem that shows we’re falling short on effective energy management California.

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Decades of Deferred Investment, Now Meeting a Surge in Demand

For many years, California put off some key grid infrastructure investments. Now, CAISO and other bodies estimate that tens of billions ($30.5B to over $60B) are essential for transmission upgrades California alone. Permitting delays, sometimes stretching for years, add millions in wasted project costs.

This history of deferred investment is now colliding with a huge jump in energy demand, largely driven by cloud computing and AI data centers. California, a global AI hub, could see its AI data center energy demand triple by 2028. PG&E alone foresees a 3.5 GW jump in this demand by 2029. Our California energy grid, already facing challenges, needs significant upgrades to prepare for this rapid energy demand growth from AI. The financial fallout from this mix of old delays and new demand could be huge.

Where’s the Real Plan? We Need a Better Grid, Not Just More Solar.

From where I stand, simply increasing solar energy California installations without a complete overhaul of our energy management and energy storage solutions is an inefficient approach. It doesn’t fully address the root cause of our renewable energy challenges.

• Scaling Up Energy Storage Solutions: While 11.7 GW of battery storage California (as of 2024) is a positive step, it’s not nearly enough for the scale of our requirements. Why aren’t we aggressively pursuing large-scale, proven energy storage solutions like pumped hydro storage? These systems have demonstrated their value over decades. Why aren’t we more actively learning from successful large-scale energy storage models seen internationally, such as some “water battery” concepts?

• Utility-Scale Energy Storage as Standard Practice: Breakthroughs like the Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility are vital, but they must become more commonplace, rather than occasional highlights for California’s energy grid.

• Proactive, Future-Proof Grid Infrastructure: We need an exceptionally focused and accelerated initiative for building out smart transmission lines, capable of handling dynamic, bidirectional flows and intelligently integrating our variable resources. This is key for true grid modernization California, not just continually resorting to expensive temporary fixes.

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A Direct Question: Are We Really Ready for 2030 and Beyond?

With the 2030 deadline for 60% renewables approaching, and 100% clean energy by 2045 on the horizon, purely incremental adjustments are insufficient. Solar energy California is fundamental, but its ultimate success hinges on a California energy grid that is equally advanced and robust for grid reliability.

To our policymakers, regulators, and utility executives, I pose these direct questions:

• What are your concrete, fully-funded, and expedited plans to build the energy storage infrastructure and transmission infrastructure that can reliably handle our renewable energy bounty and the coming energy demand explosion, particularly from AI data centers?

• How will you ensure we meet our 2030 and 2045 clean energy goals without compromising grid reliability, resorting to wasteful solar curtailment, or imposing undue financial burdens on consumers and businesses through reactive, last-minute measures for the California energy grid?

California possesses the innovative capacity. What is critically needed is the unified, decisive political and corporate will to execute a grid strategy that aligns with our renewable energy ambitions. Will we solidify our position as a true clean energy leader California, or will the current path lead to future generations viewing this period as one of missed opportunities and avoidable systemic challenges for the California energy grid?

What are your thoughts? Especially those in positions of authority: how are you addressing these urgent concerns to ensure our solar advancements contribute to long-term grid reliability and success, rather than becoming overshadowed by systemic inadequacies on the California energy grid?

Gal Moyal, founder and CEO of Maktinta Energy is a seasoned mechanical engineer who’s been tackling renewable energy projects for decades. If you have any questions, or if you would like to consult with him you can reach him at maktinta@gmail.com