The Pyrite State is forcing the closure of a nuclear and some natural gas powered electric power plants, but, surprise, surprise, they don’t have the solar and wind power generating capacity to replace them! From The Wall Street Journal:

California Scrambles to Find Electricity to Offset Plant Closures

State contends with coming loss of gas-fired power plants and its last remaining nuclear facility in transition to renewable energy

By Katherine Blunt | October 16, 2021 | 2:50 PM EDT

California is racing to secure large amounts of power in the next few years to make up for the impending closure of fossil-fuel power plants and a nuclear facility that provides nearly 10% of the electricity generated in the state.

The California Public Utilities Commission has ordered utilities to buy an unprecedented amount of renewable energy and battery storage as the state phases out four natural-gas-fired power plants and retires Diablo Canyon, the state’s last nuclear plant, starting in 2024.

The California Public Utilities Commission has ordered utilities to buy an unprecedented amount of renewable energy and battery storage as the state phases out four natural-gas-fired power plants and retires Diablo Canyon, the state’s last nuclear plant, starting in 2024.

An amusing statement, given the pile-up of container ships of the left coast that can’t be unloaded quickly. Right now, the batteries needed for electric storage are primarily manufactured in Japan, South Korea, and China. President Trump’s Department of Energy “wanted a secure domestic manufacturing supply chain that is independent of foreign sources of critical materials” in place by 2030, but there’s little progress toward that.

While the companies are moving quickly to contract for power, the California Energy Commission and the state’s grid operator have recently expressed concern that the purchases may not be enough to prevent electricity shortages in coming summers.

The order requires companies such as PG&E Corp. and Edison International’s Southern California Edison to bring more than 14,000 megawatts of power generation and storage capacity online in the coming years, an amount equal to roughly a third of the state’s forecast for peak summer demand.

California has already been strained to keep the lights on this year. Wildfires have disrupted power transmission and a severe drought has crimped hydroelectric production throughout the West. Those involved in developing the new energy sources say they anticipate significant challenges in moving fast enough to ensure adequate supplies.

“Significant challenges,” huh? Perhaps, just perhaps, they should build whatever new power facilities they intend before they take old ones out of service?

Wildfires and drought are no new things for California; wildfires happen every single year, and drought has been frequent. But even without a drought season, California doesn’t get a lot of rain. Easterners might not really appreciate that. Pennsylvania, for instance, averages 44 inches of rain and 38 inches of snow per year, Massachusetts 49 inches of rain and 47 inches of snow, Kentucky 48 inches of rain and 11 inches of snow, and Georgia 50 inches of rain plus an inch of snow. California gets just 22 inches of rain and 7 inches of snow. Missing three inches of rain is no big deal in the east; in California, it’s a serious problem.

The state’s dilemma underscores the difficulties of rapidly transitioning to cleaner power resources, as the U.S. and many countries are now pledging to do in response to concerns about climate change. A California law passed in 2018 requires the state to decarbonize its power grid by 2045.

There’s a lot more at the original, but our most liberal state is already feeling the effects of the green policies it wants to impose, and those things have just barely begun.