Summary
Edison International, through its subsidiary Southern California Edison (SCE), has filed its Distribution Resources Plan (DRP) with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). This filing is a critical step in modernizing the electric distribution system to support California's greenhouse gas reduction targets and to facilitate the integration of distributed energy resources (DERs) like solar, electric vehicles, and energy storage. The DRP outlines SCE's strategy and provides an indicative forecast of capital investments required to achieve these goals. Investors should note that the DRP forecasts significant capital expenditures through 2020, ranging from $1.405 billion to $2.585 billion for grid modernization and reinforcement, in addition to ongoing investments. The realization of these expenditures and the associated revenue recovery will be subject to CPUC review and approval in future general rate cases, starting with the 2018-2020 period. This filing represents a forward-looking plan that could lead to increased capital spending for Edison International.
Key Highlights
- 1Southern California Edison (SCE) filed its Distribution Resources Plan (DRP) with the CPUC on July 1, 2015.
- 2The DRP aims to modernize the grid to support California's greenhouse gas reduction targets and integrate Distributed Energy Resources (DERs).
- 3DERs include solar, electric vehicles, energy storage, energy efficiency, and demand response.
- 4SCE provided an indicative capital expenditure forecast through 2020, estimating a total of $1.405 billion to $2.585 billion for grid modernization and reinforcement.
- 5Capital investments are planned for distribution automation, substation automation, communications systems, technology platforms, and grid reinforcement.
- 6Recovery of these capital investments and operational expenses will be sought in future general rate cases, beginning with the 2018-2020 period.
- 7Actual capital spending and timing are subject to CPUC review, approval, and implementation decisions.