California Wire

Subscribe to Jeff St. John’s weekly newsletter on California’s clean energy transition, delivered every Wednesday.

The Latest

EV charging

California’s long road to make EV charging more reliable

Can the state regulate — and innovate — its way to more reliable public EV charging? Here’s what industry experts make of its latest efforts.

By Jeff St. John . 29 October 2026
Virtual power plants

What kind of virtual power plant would you choose?

Some 200 California households will help design VPPs that prioritize their needs in a Living Laboratory project. The goal: to vastly scale up VPP participation.

By Jeff St. John . 22 October 2026
Batteries

What to say to Californians worried about grid batteries

Large-scale batteries are safer than ever, but a few battery fires have spurred public backlash. Clean energy experts are working to win back trust.

By Jeff St. John . 13 October 2026
Transmission

California amps up pressure on grid buildouts that take too long

Transmission lines are hard to build — but they can’t take forever. A new law holds utilities accountable for delays that are holding back gigawatts of clean energy.

By Jeff St. John . 7 October 2026
Clean fleets

Electric trucks cost too much. California has a law for that.

SB 1213 will force truck manufacturers to disclose data to curb price gouging — and open new state financing options to help fleets switch to cleaner vehicles.

By Jeff St. John . 30 September 2026
Virtual power plants

Should we get excited about California’s latest virtual power plant?

Google and PG&E will enlist Silicon Valley homes with batteries and other devices to help the grid. But they’re ignoring the data center elephant in the room.

By Jeff St. John . 23 September 2026
Affordability

Newsom's last chance to tackle California's electricity costs

The governor has blocked efforts to harness distributed energy to rein in rising utility rates. Bills on his desk could reverse that trend — if he signs them.

By Jeff St. John . 16 September 2026