Photo credit: Fervo EnergyAPPLE VALLEY – Fervo Energy and California Choice Energy Authority (CalChoice), the representative for eight Southern California municipalities including Apple Valley, have entered into a 15 year purchase agreement for geothermal power supply. This agreement helps Apple Valley continue to provide renewable energy for the community and generate money for the town.
Fervo Energy will supply CalChoice municipalities with 20 MW power to provide “24/7 carbon-free geothermal power.”
Geothermal power is taken from heat that is generated within the Earth. In the US, drilling is required to access dry geothermal energy and then water is injected to create steam. The steam is used to generate electricity.
According to the announcement, Fervo Energy applies horizontal drilling and distributed fiber optic sensing to geothermal power development in order to deliver more reliable and cost-effective projects.
State legislation AB 117, passed in 2002, enabled cities and counties the right to form Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) programs which acquire power on behalf of their community, usually with a higher renewable content than private utilities offer.
CalChoice represents Apple Valley, Lancaster, San Jacinto, Pico Rivera, Rancho Mirage, Pomona, Santa Barbara and Palmdale.
“This is a great example of local government leading the way in providing residents and businesses with 100% green, carbon-free energy,” said Desert Community Energy Chair Geoff Kors. In addition to CalChoice, Desert Community Energy and Clean Energy Alliance are also parties to the purchase agreement.
AVCE is Apple Valley’s CCA and locally operated electrical power provider. They currently serve approximately 23,000 residential accounts and 2,500 commercial accounts.
Residents have the choice to use Southern California Edison or AVCE as an option that provides a higher amount of renewable energy in their electricity.
AVCE uses a combination of solar, wind and geothermal power – now including Fervo. They estimate the energy demand for 2035 to increase to 277 GWh up from its 257.24 GWh 2023 estimate.
The CCA not only provides municipalities more control but economic benefits.
AVCE generated an estimated $16.5 million revenue for fiscal year 2020 – 2021.
, the representative for eight Southern California municipalities including Apple Valley, have entered into a 15 year purchase agreement for geothermal power supply.){kind=link}