MCE Achieves Governor Browns 2030 Goal 18 Years Early

SAN RAFAEL, CA—In his annual State of the State address, Governor Brown laid out what many across  the country are calling an ambitious energy plan. A key element of the plan is to increase California’s  renewable energy to 50% by 2030. The Bay Area’s first community choice public power agency, Marin  Clean Energy (MCE), achieved this goal 18 years ahead of schedule!    

MCE launched service in 2010 with two service options: Light Green (now 50%renewable) and Deep Green (100% renewable). Today MCE offers a third, 100% local solar service option: Local Sol.

Governor Brown believes his new 50% renewable energy goal is “absolutely necessary if we are to have  any chance of stopping potentially catastrophic changes to our climate system.” California currently  has a law dictating that the State’s electricity supply be 33% renewable by 2020.      

MCE is a public, notâ?forâ?profit electricity agency that serves more than 125,000 customers in the Bay Area. MCE customers have the power to choose energy products that are 50% to 100% renewable. These renewable resources include solar, wind, bioenergy, geothermal and hydroelectric.  MCE’s rates are costâ?competitive with PG&E. MCE offers 50% renewable power at prices lower than PG&E – and saved its customers over $5.9 million in 2014. MCE currently serves all of Marin County and the City of  Richmond and will soon be offering service to unincorporated Napa County and the cities of San Pablo,  El Cerrito, and Benicia.    

Providing more renewable power for MCE’s customers achieves significant greenhouse gas reductions.  Since its launch in 2010, MCE has already reduced an estimated 131 million pounds of carbon dioxide.   MCE  Executive  Officer  Dawn  Weisz  comments,  “Simply  by  replacing  fossil  fuel  purchases  with  renewable energy like solar, geothermal and wind power, MCE is able to achieve huge greenhouse gas  reductions.” For example, the County of Marin reached their climate action plan greenhouse gas  reduction goal eight years ahead of schedule.    

Through more renewable power, MCE also contributes to the construction of new California renewable power sources, which create California jobs and grow the California economy. MCE will receive power in 2016, 2017, and 2018 from the new EDP Renewables Rising Tree Wind Farm (Kern County, CA), which created and supported over 300 Californiaâ?based jobs. In total, 177 megawatts of new, California renewable energy projects are under development for MCE customers – enough to provide power for approximately 85,000 homes per year.      
About MCE: MCE is a notâ?forâ?profit, communityâ?based electricity provider that gives customers the choice of having  50% to 100% of their electricity supplied from clean, renewable sources such as solar, wind, bioenergy, geothermal  and hydroelectric at competitive rates. By choosing MCE, customers help support new inâ?state and local renewable  energy generation. For more information about MCE, visit www.mceCleanEnergy.org or call 1 (888) 632â?3674.