Long duration bulk energy storage: procurement.

Existing law provides for the establishment of an Independent System Operator (ISO) as a nonprofit public benefit corporation and requires the ISO to make certain filings with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and to seek authority from the FERC as needed to give the ISO the ability to secure generating and transmission resources necessary to guarantee achievement of planning and operating reserve criteria no less stringent than those established by the Western Electricity Coordinating Council and the North American Electric Reliability Council. This bill would require the ISO, on or before December 31, 2019, to complete a process for the procurement of long duration energy storage projects that in aggregate have at least 1,000 megawatts capacity, but not more than 2,000 megawatts, except as provided. The bill would require the ISO to develop a methodology for allocating the cost of that procurement to all load-serving entities within the ISO-controlled electrical grid, as provided. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act is a crime. Because the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act, a violation of which would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.