Our Approach

PG&E is committed to expanding the use of clean distributed energy options to meet customer energy, resilience, and affordability needs, while supporting California’s greenhouse gas reduction and other environmental goals.

We provide a variety of tools and resources for customers who want to use solar energy, other distributed generation, and storage. Our website provides information on the process for adopting solar and helps customers determine if solar is right for them. PG&E also offers incentive programs for fuel cells, wind, and battery storage, as well as solar for low-income customers.

Customers who want to invest in solar, but are unable to install on-site generation, can enroll in PG&E’s community renewables programs, which give customers the option to purchase up to 100% of their electricity from a program generating solar power within California:

• We saw significant growth in Solar Choice, our general market program, ending the year with participation at 213 MW compared to around 43 MW in 2020.

Backup Power Supply Distributed Outdoor Energy Storage Cabinet Self-Cooling-PW-164

• Our Green Saver program, a community renewables program targeting customers in disadvantaged communities, remained fully subscribed. This program reduces barriers where going solar might not otherwise be accessible for participants, and matches 100% of their usage to power generated by certified solar projects, The Green Saver program also provides a 20% energy bill discount in addition to the discounts provided through other assistance programs such as CARE and FERA.
• We approved contracts for 6 MW of additional solar supply in 2021 for Green Saver program customers. We also approved contracts for 3 MW of additional solar supply for customers participating in the Local Green Saver program, another community renewables program targeting customers in disadvantaged communities where participants will eventually enroll in specific solar projects that come online in their neighborhoods.

2021 Milestones

Reaching New Totals

• Reached a milestone of more than 600,000 customer solar systems—totaling more than 6,000 MW—connected to PG&E’s electric grid, more than any other U.S. utility. During the year, PG&E connected nearly 60% of customer solar systems to the electric grid within six days
• Totaled over 33,000 customers with battery storage at their homes or businesses, equivalent to 362 MW of capacity. Newly installed customer storage capacity increased by nearly 40% compared to 2020.

Advancing Clean Technologies

• Helped customers build resilience using energy storage. Through our Self-Generation Incentive Program, we completed over 4,900 interconnections by the end of 2021 and paid over 6,200 projects, resulting in over $71 million in total payments. This included over 2,100 equity resiliency projects funded at $54 million.
• Supported customer solar water heating. We provided approximately $163 million in statewide incentive payments to single family residential, multi-family residential, and commercial solar water heating installations. These incentives have helped support about 12,350 gas-offsetting projects since the program’s inception, which, in total, have reduced annual consumption of gas and electricity in excess of 9.5 million therms and 755 MWh.
• Raised customer awareness of solar power and other clean generation and storage technology options. Through our energy centers, we offered a wide range of training opportunities on solar, storage, and other technologies for different audiences and education levels, via webinars. We held 50 classes on solar and other technologies with over 2,700 attendees, more than three times the number of classes and event attendees in 2020.

Building Community Resilience

• Supported clean temporary energy generation solutions. We piloted alternative mobile generation technologies, including a Mainspring linear generator in Napa County, an Aggreko Y Cube battery in Placer County, and a first-of-its-kind for PG&E mobile backup power solution using 100% energy storage in Lake County. We are also exploring the use of similar technologies to reduce reliance on diesel generators at distribution microgrids during PSPS or Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings events.
• Paved the way for a clean substation microgrid pilot by conducting a competitive solicitation for alternatives to diesel temporary generation at our Calistoga substation and to power local customers during broader grid outages.