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In Memory of Rajat Deb: Inspiring Man of Ideas and Remarkable Silicon Valley Archetype

By Anjuli Deb -- With deep sadness and profound appreciation, we share the passing of LCG's founder, Dr. Rajat K. Deb. He was our president and one of the first entrepreneurs in the computer revolution. He was also our friend, our teacher and mentor, and for a few of us, our father and grandfather.

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SRP and EDP Renewables Announce Completion of 800 MWh Flatland Energy Storage Project in Arizona

LCG, June 9, 2026--EDP Renewables North America LLC (EDPR NA) and Salt River Project (SRP), a not for-profit public power utility serving central Arizona, today announced the completion of the Flatland Energy Storage project, located in Coolidge, Arizona. The new battery energy storage system (BESS) has a generating capacity of 200 MW and can provide 800 MWh of storage capacity to store energy during times of surplus supply and deliver power to customers when needed to meet peak periods of customer demand.

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Industry News

SDG&E, Cal-PX May Have Answer to Price Spikes

LCG, July 21, 2000--San Diegans are hot under the collar about bills from their local electric utility that have doubled since May, and no amount of air-conditioning seems to help. But yesterday, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. said it had worked out a plan with the California Power Exchange that may protect its customers from price spikes in the wholesale power market.

SDG&E has become, under Californias electric restructuring law, a delivery company for electricity, but no longer makes its own. It acts as a middleman for its customers, purchasing power on the Cal-PX and passing the cost on to its customers without a mark-up. But the bills come from SDG&E, and the heat is directed at the utility.

Working with Cal-PX, SDG&E has cooked up a plan that would allow it to buy power on the exchanges "block forward market" up to nine months in advance, instead of the customary three months. That would protect customers from exposure to price spikes that occur in the "real time" spot market.

"This is a market-based tool that could help reduce the volatility in electric prices for our residentialand small-business customers during the high-demand summer months," said Edwin A. Guiles,president of SDG&E. "We hope the (California Public Utilities Commission) will allow us to implement the program as soon as possible, because our customers need help today."

The company said it had filed an application with the CPUC late Wednesday and had asked that the petition be considered at the commissions August 3 meeting.

George Sladoje, Cal-PX president, said his organization and the utility "worked diligently over the past couple of days to propose this market-based solution and help alleviate the current situation that San Diego's customers are facing. This proposal could provide some relief in the near term to the price spikes that San Diegans have been experiencing."

Things arent as bleak for San Diego electricity customers as they seem to think they are. In May, a typical householder paid $50 for electricity and the current bill is around $100, so that householder figures hes out a hundred bucks and blames the utility and deregulation.

But the exposure to market prices occurred because SDG&E paid off its stranded costs faster than anyone thought possible and is about to return close to $400 million to its customers. On top of that, theres another $100 million in a CPUC-controlled "transition cost balancing account" that will be returned to the companys customers.

When the utility divvies that $500 million up among its customers in August and September, our typical householder will get about $300. He will then be two hundred bucks ahead. Will he then say to SDG&E "I dont really deserve this money?"

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