Imagine the irony -- UCAN has been pushing SDG&E for years to promote solar electric -- PV power.  So when SDG&E is finally shamed into pursuing solar power (largely by Southern California Edison),  it’s application for its self-described Solar Energy Project turns out to be a phony ploy.  As much as we'd love to promote PV in San Diego, UCAN cannot support the overly expensive and unduly megawatt-limited “project” that SDGE& has presented to the Commission in this application. UCAN’s protest is based upon the following points:

- SDG&E has failed to show cost-effectiveness of the project.   It's price is close to double of what SCE has proposed in its service area.
- SDG&E appears to be avoiding lower-cost rooftop PV potential it has already identified in order to explore the higher-cost world of single-axis tracking PV at a considerable premium for ratepayers
-  SDG&E doesn’t show that its ratepayers’ investment in this particular form of PV deployment will result in any added benefits, e.g. decreased cost of axis tracking PV in the future.
-  SDG&E doesn’t explain why it selected single-axis tracking over more promising PV deployments or , that it even considered other PV applications.
-  SDG&E has sought to limit deployment of PV to unusually small and disaggregated installations, thus losing the benefits of economies of scale.

For more details, read the attached protest.  It is yet another missed opportunity where SDG&E could have done the right thing but was diverted by the lure of easy and big bucks. Oh, and just in case if you are wondering whether it is just UCAN's high expectations that are at fault,  we've also attached the City of San Diego's and CPUC staff's protests.   And no doubt, there will be others protesting this stuffed turkey of a plan.