When the Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) program began in 2002, renewable resources made up a small portion of the electricity consumed by Californians. Today, California is well on its way to achieving some of the most ambitious clean energy goals in the nation.
In 2022, over 39 percent of California’s retail electricity sales was served by RPS-certified renewables. Together with large hydroelectric and nuclear power, 61 percent of California’s retail electricity sales come from zero-carbon, clean generation.
Senate Bill 100 (2018) and other recent legislation established the following goals for California’s retail electricity sales to be supplied by renewable and zero-carbon resources:
- 60% by 2030
- 90% by 2035
- 95% by 2040
- 100% by 2045
Estimated CAISO Clean Energy Days
In 2024, clean energy supply equaled or exceeded demand in the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) service area for nearly 1227 hours over 219 different days*. That’s equivalent to 51 days of meeting demand with 100% clean electricity. Although the portion of daily demand exceeded by clean energy may be as short as 5 minutes, these examples demonstrate what is possible as the state transitions to a 100 percent clean energy future.
CAISO is estimated to serve about 80 percent of California’s electricity demand. Other California balancing authority service areas do not provide 5-minute updates, so a similar comparison is not currently available.
*The CAISO evaluation of days served by clean energy uses CAISO published data presented on CAISO’s Today Outlook website which is provided for informational purposes only and should not be used for determining actual billing values, operational planning, or statewide progress in meeting California’s clean energy goals. Clean energy sources counted include small hydro, solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, nuclear, and large hydro. The published CAISO demand evaluated does not include electricity consumed for pumping loads or to charge batteries and may not represent actual retail sales delivered to consumers. Renewables included from CAISO may not necessarily be certified for RPS compliance. In addition, the reported biomass supply may not reflect actual renewable generation as only the portion of the certified facility electricity generated from renewable feedstock would count as renewable electricity generation. CAISO’s Today’s Outlook data is subject to change without notice. For official CAISO reporting.
