11 May 2026 4 min read Sable Offshore Corp

MONDAY NEWS CODEX: EDAM Launch; Golden State Wind; Carbon-Free Pasadena

Battery Array as Powerful as 12 Nuclear Plants Hits Major Milestone in California: "While Californians were getting ready for spring break in late March, the state quietly broke an energy grid record: For the first time, its battery fleet discharged more than 12,000 megawatts of power, roughly the output of 12 large nuclear plants." YAHOO NEWS
CAISO Picks California Grid Holdings to Build 500-kV Tx Line: "The ISO estimates the project will cost $500 million to $700 million and will be online by June 1, 2034, according to its 2024/2025 transmission plan." RTO INSIDER
California Seeks Preliminary Injunction to Stop Sable Pipeline Restart: "California filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop Sable Offshore Corp.’s restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System serving the offshore Santa Ynez Unit. California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed the motion on May 1, 2026, asking the court to revoke the federal order to restart the pipeline and to block the transportation of oil through the pipeline system. The pipeline, which was shut down following the 2015 Refugio oil spill, is critical to restarting oil production in the Santa Ynez Unit." CALIFORNIA ENERGY JOURNAL
California Subpoenas Golden State Wind Over Trump Lease Deal: "The California Energy Commission is investigating the deal that Golden State Wind made with the U.S. Department of the Interior to surrender a wind lease off the coast of California in exchange for a payment from the federal government, and it anticipates litigation, according to letters and a subpoena the commission released..." UTILITY DIVE
- Trump Administration Gets Strategic With Offshore Wind: "...How much were these projects going to cost the taxpayers in tax credits over their lifetimes? There would have been an investment tax credit of 30% on the amount invested. At a reported investment amount of about $3 billion for Bluepoint Wind and as much as $20 billion for Golden State Wind, investment tax credits could have been as much as about $7 billion. Production tax credits at 2.6 cents per kWh could have been additional billions. And this for intermittent power that could not have replaced any of the existing dispatchable capacity." MANHATTAN CONTRARIAN
- Trump's Wasteful Deal to Abandon California Offshore Wind Project Undermines Clean, Homegrown Power: "California is the only West Coast state with offshore wind leases. One of those five leases, the Golden State Wind project, was expected to generate enough power for about 1.1 million homes. Canceling it does not just remove a major source of clean electricity — it also puts significant economic benefits at risk. The project was set to deliver $24 million for workforce training and to build out a domestic supply chain — funding the state has already committed — with the offshore wind industry in California projected to create roughly 8,000 high road jobs." ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND
Can Oil Industry Lawsuits Compel Rational Energy Policy? "The most consequential of the cases filed by oil industry interests are those that challenge Senate Bill 1137, which requires oil wells to be located at least 3,200 feet from any human occupied structure, what they deem to be a 'sensitive receptor.' Within these 'health protection zones,' no new wells may be drilled, and only minimal work may be done to maintain existing wells. This effectively kills oil production in all but the most remote and uninhabited areas of the state. It is also an exercise in absurdity, since California’s oil wells are strictly regulated and emit negligible quantities of methane and volatile organic compounds, whereas upwelling reserves of underground gas and oil leak naturally to the surface in prodigious quantities thanks to California’s seismically active geology. The only way to stop this leakage is to deplete the reservoirs with drilling and extraction." CALIFORNIA GLOBE
EDAM is "Solid and Stable" So Far, Says CAISO: "EDAM launched with a single participant, PacifiCorp, with its second participant Portland General Electric set to join the market in October. On Monday, all EDAM areas passed 100% of the market’s resource sufficiency evaluation, and the regional energy transferred increased to 600 MW..." UTILITY DIVE
- "Just the Beginning" – CAISO's Mainzer Talks About EDAM Launch: "EDAM will be the first day-ahead market to start operations in a Western Interconnection that has long resisted the development of organized electricity markets. SPP’s Markets+ is scheduled to follow in fall 2027." RTO INSIDER
Electric Truck Fleets Could Push Down Residential Rates by 2035 - Report: "Electrified medium- and heavy-duty trucking fleets could reduce residential electric rates up to $20 per year in northern California by 2035, according to a new report funded by Powering America’s Commercial Transportation and the Edison Electric Institute." UTILITY DIVE
- Electric Rate Impacts of Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicle Electrification Investments: "In the main scenario using ACC-based marginal costs, MHDV electrification applies downward pressure on average residential rates in both 2028 and 2035, as increased sales outweigh incremental costs. However, when higher distribution costs derived from PG&E’s Electrification Impact Study (EIS Part 2) are applied, electrification produces upward rate pressure in 2028 and in 2035 under unmanaged charging, while managed charging returns downward pressure by 2035." PACT
For California Farmers, a Clean-Energy Dilemma: "After a battery-storage fire last year, farmers are raising concerns about a new facility in Watsonville, California, near prime farmland. " CIVIL EATS
Industry Groups Seek Greater Role in Alternative Western RA Program: "Development of the alternative resource program is picking up pace and stakeholders want to ensure they have a say in how the effort evolves." RTO INSIDER
Pasadena's Path to 100% Carbon-Free Electricity: "Pasadena’s system presents a distinctive planning challenge. The City relies heavily on energy imports through a single transmission interconnection with the broader California grid and so has local generation to maintain reliability during peak demand or during grid contingencies. Physical space for new infrastructure within the city is limited, so distributed solutions rather than more centralized projects play a big role in meeting the city’s local generation needs. These constraints make Pasadena a useful case study in how local conditions shape the clean energy transition." E3
Refinery Closures Increase California's Reliance on Fuel Imports: "While imports are increasing the cost of gasoline in California, most of the difference between U.S. average national gas prices and California’s average price is due to policies and regulations that lawmakers in the state have instituted, many in the name of climate change. They include the highest state gas tax in the nation at $0.709 per gallon and hidden fees that result from a cap-and-trade program to lower greenhouse gas emissions, a low-carbon fuel program, underground gas storage fees, and a state and local sales tax, which all add to the price of gasoline." INSTITUTE for ENERGY RESEARCH

You might also like...

WEEKEND NEWS CODEX: Assembly Bill 1777; Senate Bill 913; and California vs. the Defense Production Act

MID-WEEK NEWS CODEX: Senate Bill 254; Reducing Electric Rates; CARB Amendments

MONDAY AGGREGATE: Water District Petition Suggests Crack in SGIP Program Logic; CAISO Documents Multi-State Market Options

WEEKEND NEWS CODEX: Willow Rock Project; Soda Mountain Solar Project; PBF's Martinez Refinery

MID-WEEK NEWS CODEX: Western Gateway Pipeline; Biofuels' Slow Growth; Arrival of EDAM and Markets+