California energy stakeholders are sounding various levels of alarm as summer nears with both natural gas supply and prices uncertain at best in a state that is highly reliant on the fuel for its electricity generating plants, large industrial loads and home heating needs. A typical homeowner in Pacific Gas and Electric Co.’s territory in the northern half of the state is paying $3/month more for gas right now, a utility spokesperson said.

A California Energy Commission (CEC) spokesperson said last week that California is now competing with the rest of the nation for dwindling natural gas supplies. Basins in the Rockies, western Canada and the Southwest that traditionally served the West are now also being tapped by markets in the East.

Some state officials are concerned that a very hot summer could cause already-depleted natural gas storage volumes to dwindle even more, but others, such as San Jose, CA-based Calpine Corp. are downplaying gas supply or price concerns.

Calpine, which now operates power plants in more than two dozen states totaling 19,000 MW, owns and uses its own gas supplies for about 25% of its generating plant needs annually. Rather than a supply problem, a Calpine spokesperson said the power plant developer sees an infrastructure problem — the ability to get gas supplies to places where they are needed, such as new combined-cycle, gas-fired power plants.

Calpine is supporting the need for increasing the interstate pipeline capacity coming into California. The company has urged state regulators to encourage a competitive market for natural gas in the state. As part of that, the CEC and California Public Utilities Commission are encouraging electric utilities to strive for 20% of their load coming from renewable sources of energy to relieve the growing pressure on natural gas supplies and infrastructure to service all of the new power plants.

©Copyright 2003 Intelligence Press Inc. All rights reserved. The preceding news report may not be republished or redistributed, in whole or in part, in any form, without prior written consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.