Aspen Team Wins EPIC Program Contract
With a 5-0 vote at its regular business meeting on June 10, the California Energy Commission (CEC) agreed with its staff’s recommendation and approved the awarding of a 6-year contract to the Aspen Environmental Group team for providing consulting and administrative services under the Commission’s Electric Program Investment Charge (EPIC) Program. To provide the wide array of needed services, Aspen carefully selected a team that consists of several dozen support personnel, and three experts for each of 37 categories, for a total of 111 experts, whom together cover virtually every facet of energy production, transmission and use. This team includes several subcontractors who have familiarity with CEC’s mission and working relationship on programs such as the Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) Program.
The proposal totaled over 1,000 pages, requiring an extensive and coordinated effort among all three major Aspen offices. The work will consist largely of evaluating grant applications under the EPIC Program, as well as providing some direct support for R&D efforts proposed by CEC staff, and other related support efforts, such as graphics and production support for R&D reports. The CEC authorized $1 million in spending for this contract for each of its first two years; funding is expected to continue for the full 6-year term at approximately the same rate.
EPIC is a new R&D program that replaces the PIER Electric Program, which had been funded through a surcharge on electric utility bills that was approved by the California Legislature. Funding for the PIER Program ended last year after the Legislature did not renew the program in the 2013-14 session. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) created EPIC on November 14, 2013, and selected the Energy Commission as one of the four administrators of EPIC funds. The three other administrators are Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E). EPIC will fund innovative technologies, tools, and approaches that provide benefits to electric ratepayers in PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E service territories through greater reliability, lower costs, increased safety, and enhanced environmental sustainability.
EPIC is the most comprehensive statewide approach to creating new energy solutions, fostering regional innovation, and bringing ideas to the marketplace. Under this program, electricity R&D will move energy technologies and products from the lab to life, making our electricity system safer and more reliable, while lowering costs and giving ratepayers choices and control.
Former commission chair Karen Douglas noted at the June 10 meeting that she was “pleased to see an increased emphasis on research of topics related to power plant siting,” referring to the inclusion of analysis of environmental effects in several areas of research, including a separate category solely for Local Planning and Permitting expertise, for which Aspen has extensive experience. Aspen’s Program Manager for this project is Tom Murphy and the Deputy Program Manager is Matt Trask, both of whom have worked on CEC projects for many years.