Is SDG&E motivated by customers’ needs or by profit-seeking?

Re “SDG&E wants to build a new transmission line. Will it get the OK? And how much will it cost ratepayers?” (Aug. 29): The recent article about SDG&E wanting to build an expensive transmission line should be another red flag to everyone. Considering the fact that electricity demand has been roughly flat for the last decade, why does the local electrical monopoly want to build this “Golden Pacific Powerlink”? The answer is simple, and it has nothing to do with the need for more electrical power. It has solely to do with the fact that SDG&E is allowed to generate profits when it performs more construction. As quoted in the article, if we “prioritize local solar power, then the justification for the Powerlink disappears.”

Since rooftop solar saved all ratepayers nearly $1.5 billion in 2024, the California Public Utilities Commission should be doing more to promote rooftop solar and less to assist SDG&E in racking up more profits.

— Alan Barnebey, Solana Beach

There is every reason to believe that any increase in power demand in San Diego can be met by locally owned rooftop solar, which would be paid for by building owners, saving the need to give SDG&E a rate increase to pay for the Powerlink. Under the current rules of the CPUC, utilities are guaranteed a return of 8% to 10% profit on capital projects like this, so naturally utilities want to build them rather than encourage local generation. The claim that solar power is not available at night is obsolete now that the cost of batteries has decreased so rapidly. Further, the coming generation of electric vehicles will be bidirectional, which will provide home batteries effectively for free.

— Jose Torre-Bueno, Vista