California's Progress Towards Renewable Energy Goals

California’s Progress Towards Renewable Energy Goals: Where Does Solar Fit In?

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In the Golden State, where sunshine is as abundant as innovation, California continues to cement its position as America’s renewable energy pioneer. With over 300 days of sunshine annually in many regions, it’s no surprise that solar energy has become a cornerstone of California’s ambitious clean energy revolution.

California has set some of the nation’s most aggressive clean energy targets: 100% zero-carbon electricity by 2045. As visitors explore the greater Sacramento area, they’re witnessing this transformation firsthand—a region where solar panels adorn rooftops, power major facilities, and represent a community committed to a sustainable future.

California’s Renewable Energy Landscape & Goals

California’s clean energy journey is guided by landmark legislation like Senate Bill 100, which established a three-stage approach to decarbonizing the state’s electricity:

  • 60% renewable energy by 2030
  • 90% by 2035
  • 95% by 2040
  • 100% zero-carbon electricity by 2045

These aren’t just aspirational targets—California is making remarkable progress. As of early 2024, renewables account for over 40% of California’s electricity generation, with solar providing an impressive 28% of the state’s power. With more than 46,874 megawatts of installed solar capacity by the end of 2023, California maintains its commanding lead as America’s top solar state.

This aggressive push toward clean energy serves multiple purposes: addressing climate change, reducing air pollution in regions historically plagued by poor air quality, creating thousands of green jobs, and establishing energy independence from fossil fuels.

Solar Energy’s Crucial Role

Solar power’s prominence in California’s energy strategy is no accident. Several factors have converged to make solar particularly viable here:

  • Abundant sunshine: California’s climate provides ideal conditions for solar generation year-round
  • Falling technology costs: Solar panel prices have decreased by over 70% in the past decade
  • Energy storage advances: Battery technology increasingly helps solve intermittency challenges
  • Strong policy support: Incentives, mandates, and streamlined permitting accelerate adoption

California’s solar landscape features two primary deployment models:

Utility-Scale Solar Farms transform vast tracts of land into clean energy powerhouses. These sprawling installations, often featuring thousands of panels that track the sun’s movement, feed electricity directly into the grid. California hosts some of the world’s largest solar farms, capable of powering hundreds of thousands of homes.

Distributed Solar brings power generation closer to consumption. Rooftop installations on homes and businesses not only reduce individual electricity bills but also strengthen grid resilience by decreasing transmission losses and relieving stress on centralized infrastructure during peak demand periods.

Solar in Sacramento

Throughout Sacramento’s neighborhoods, solar panels have become an increasingly common sight, transforming once-traditional roofscapes into distributed clean energy networks. The region’s flat topography and abundant sunshine create ideal conditions for solar generation.

Visitors arriving at Sacramento International Airport witness one of the region’s most visible solar success stories—a 7.9-megawatt solar array with over 23,000 panels that provides approximately one-third of the airport’s electricity needs. As one of the largest airport solar installations in the United States, it demonstrates Sacramento’s commitment to sustainable infrastructure.

Looking ahead, the proposed Oveja Ranch Solar Project in southern Sacramento County represents the next generation of solar development—combining utility-scale solar generation with battery storage to provide clean, reliable power even when the sun isn’t shining. This project aligns perfectly with SMUD’s zero-carbon vision.

Sacramento’s Local Energy Provider

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) serves as the primary energy provider for the greater Sacramento area. As a community-owned, not-for-profit utility, SMUD operates with a unique position in California’s energy landscape—it answers directly to its customers rather than shareholders. Unlike investor-owned utilities regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission, SMUD sets its own rates and policies through a publicly elected board of directors.

SMUD’s Clean Energy Targets

Remarkably, SMUD has established one of the nation’s most ambitious clean energy timelines, aiming to deliver 100% zero-carbon electricity by 2030—a full 15 years ahead of California’s statewide goal. This accelerated target reflects both the community’s environmental values and SMUD’s confidence in renewable technology’s rapidly advancing capabilities.

SMUD Solar Programs and Incentives

SMUD offers several innovative programs to accelerate solar adoption:

Solar and Storage Rate: SMUD’s current structure for new solar customers replaced the previous Net Energy Metering program. This updated approach encourages customers to pair solar with battery storage, allowing them to store excess daytime generation for evening use and reducing demand on the grid during peak hours.

Storage Incentives: Recognizing batteries as essential for a reliable renewable grid, SMUD provides substantial incentives for residential and commercial customers who add storage to their solar systems. These incentives can significantly reduce the upfront cost of battery installation.

Residential SolarShares: This pioneering community solar program allows residents who can’t install rooftop solar (renters, those with shaded properties, etc.) to subscribe to solar energy from local solar farms. Visitors staying for extended periods can appreciate that even without visible panels, many Sacramento homes and apartments access clean solar power through this innovative approach.

Local Initiatives and Community Involvement

Sacramento’s renewable transition emphasizes equity alongside environmental progress. Organizations like GRID Alternatives North Valley work to ensure solar benefits reach all communities, providing no-cost solar installations for qualified low-income households while offering hands-on job training in the growing solar industry.

The Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program extends solar’s benefits to apartment dwellers throughout the Sacramento region. This initiative provides incentives for installing solar on affordable housing properties, reducing energy costs for tenants while giving property owners a hedge against rising utility rates.

Relevance to Visitors

Seeing Solar in Action

Visitors to the Sacramento region can observe the clean energy transition firsthand. Besides the impressive airport installation, solar arrays increasingly power iconic destinations throughout the area. From the panels adorning government buildings downtown to solar carports shading vehicles at shopping centers and office parks, renewable energy infrastructure has become integrated into the urban landscape.

Guided eco-tours highlighting Sacramento’s sustainability initiatives have emerged as unique attractions for environmentally conscious travelers. These experiences showcase how the region balances urban development with climate responsibility.

Supporting Clean Energy Through Local Choices

By patronizing businesses in a region committed to clean energy, visitors indirectly support these initiatives. Many Sacramento hotels, restaurants, and attractions now proudly advertise their renewable energy commitments, allowing visitors to align their travel choices with their environmental values.

For those considering relocation or investment, Sacramento’s sustainability leadership presents an attractive proposition—a community planning proactively for energy resilience and climate adaptation.

Environmental Impact Awareness

Sacramento’s embrace of solar energy contributes significantly to improved air quality in California’s Central Valley, historically challenged by pollution trapped by surrounding mountains. Visitors benefit directly from these improvements when enjoying outdoor activities in the region.

The transition to solar and other renewables also helps preserve California’s precious water resources. Unlike conventional power plants that require massive water volumes for cooling, solar photovoltaic generation requires virtually no water to produce electricity—a critical advantage in a state frequently facing drought conditions.

Fast Facts About Solar in Sacramento

  • SMUD’s Zero-Carbon Goal: 100% carbon-free electricity by 2030
  • Sacramento International Airport: Powers ⅓ of operations with 7.9MW solar array
  • Sacramento’s Solar Advantage: Averages 269 sunny days annually
  • Solar Jobs: The Sacramento region supports thousands of jobs in solar installation, manufacturing, and services
  • Community Solar: Programs like SolarShares allow participation without rooftop installation

Challenges and the Path Forward

Despite remarkable progress, challenges remain in California’s renewable transition. Grid modernization requires substantial investment to accommodate the two-way flow of electricity from distributed resources. Energy storage deployment must accelerate to balance solar’s daytime abundance with evening demand peaks. And ensuring equitable access means extending clean energy benefits to all communities, particularly those historically underserved.

SMUD and California’s broader energy ecosystem continue addressing these challenges through technology innovation, policy evolution, and community engagement. The commitment to a zero-carbon future remains unwavering, with solar playing a central role in that vision.

California’s Eye on Solar

California’s journey toward 100% clean electricity represents one of the most ambitious energy transformations globally, with solar power as its shining centerpiece. The greater Sacramento area, propelled by SMUD’s industry-leading goals, exemplifies how communities can accelerate this transition while delivering economic and environmental benefits.

As visitors explore Northern California, they’re witnessing the early stages of an energy revolution—one where clean, locally-generated power becomes the new normal. Sacramento’s solar leadership demonstrates that with vision, commitment, and innovative approaches, a zero-carbon future isn’t just possible; it’s already emerging across the region’s sun-drenched landscape.

Take the Next Step Toward a Greener Future
California’s renewable energy goals are within reach—and solar power is leading the charge. Whether you’re ready to install solar or just exploring your options, Magic Sun Solar is here to help.

Call us today at (916) 259-2587 or request a consultation online to see how solar energy can benefit your home or business. Let’s power a cleaner California—together.

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Renewables accounted for 27% of total generation

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California’s solar sector has been on a building sprint, with a solar rise from 0.5% of generation in 2010 to 10% in 2017.  As a result some believe that California may be taking a break following two new production records in the month of March 2018 — which included an unprecedented 50% of the state’s demand on March 5. The next day, utility operators reported a second record for total generation from solar which produced 10,411 megawatts, beating out last year’s record by 5%.

Greentech Media reports that it is unlikely that there will be any large new purchases of solar, or other renewable energy sources, by utility companies. In short:

  • Investor-owned utilities are well ahead of state targets of 25% renewables by 2020
  • No new renewable capacity was procured last year (though homes and businesses are still adding more)

“They’re basically saying, ‘There’s too much going on; we don’t know what to do, so we’re not going to do anything for a while,’” Jan Smutny-Jones of the Independent Energy Producers Association told Greentech.

The US residential rooftop solar market, after at least 16 consecutive years of growth, shrank slightly in 2017, reports Bloomberg. But the residential industry is not going away, with an estimated 2,500 MW installed last year, much of it in California. Analysts expect expansion to continue in emerging markets Utah, Texas, South Carolina and Florida.

One thing could tip California’s solar market back into a furious growth period: a new target. With the mandate to generate half the state’s electricity from renewable sources by 2030 now easily within reach (renewables accounted for 27% of total generation last year), the California state Senate has proposed legislation to require 100% of the state’s power come from renewable sources by 2045.

Source: Quartz Media

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California will continue to pay retail rate for excess solar power

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A January 2016 article by the NY Times noted that regulators in California agreed to retain a system that compensates users of rooftop solar panels for their excess electricity. This was an important decision for residential solar users since there have been shifts in the power industry stemming from the spread of renewable energy.

Sarah Auck. regulatory director at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, noted that “This decision creates certainty for consumers, it creates certainty for clean energy providers, it creates certainty for investors and it upholds California’s strong tradition of clean energy leadership.”

As things are now, at least 20 states are re-examining their policies on how to value electricity when it flows from customers to utilities, rather than the other way around. Under so-called net metering, customers receive credits on their bills for the unused energy their panels produce. Most states have such policies, but the amounts vary, with some offering credits near wholesale energy prices and others, like California, offering the retail rate.

As Solar advocates we are pleased that California solar users will received the retail rate for the power they generated, and believe that this helps the electrical infrastructure by lowering strain on the grid, especially important at times of high energy demand which in turns results in higher end costs to the consumer.

While some feel that solar customers put an undue burden on non-solar customers, California regulators sided mainly with the solar industry and its proponents and generally rejected proposals to reduce the net-metering credit and add a slate of new charges, though it added some new rates and fees.

The net-metering program narrowly approved by the California Public Utilities Commission will require that new solar customers pay a one-time interconnection fee, estimated between $75 and $150, and begin paying fees of a few cents a kilowatt-hour that most other customers already pay. Those charges fund low-income and energy efficiency programs. The NY Times article also noted that Solar customers will also be compensated at different rates depending on when they send their excess power to the grid.

It is important to note that the changes do not affect customers who already have solar panels or who install them before the utilities in their area reach certain levels of rooftop use in their service territories, which the California Solar Energy Industries Association estimates will happen by early next year. And regulators, who are to re-examine net metering again in 2019, left open the possibility that they could revise or add charges.

Source : The New York Times