The Golden Pacific Powerlink:
Hundreds attend SDG&E virtual workshops on proposed 145-mile Golden Pacific Powerlink as state champions grid resiliency – East County Magazine
What Every San Diego Ratepayer Needs to Know
A proposed $2.3 billion, 145-mile high-voltage transmission line promises grid resilience and clean energy — but detailed examination of SDG&E's own open house testimony reveals significant unanswered questions on costs, wildfire risk, environmental damage, eminent domain authority, and whether alternatives were adequately studied.
BLUF — Bottom Line Up Front
San Diego Gas & Electric is developing a 145-mile, 500-kilovolt transmission line from the Imperial Valley to the San Diego–Orange County border at a preliminary cost estimated between $1.3 billion and $2.3 billion. Because SDG&E represents approximately 9% of CAISO customers, its ratepayers will bear roughly that share of the total cost — with the remainder spread across all CAISO-jurisdiction utility customers statewide. That cost will be recovered over decades, according to SDG&E's own open house testimony. This project arrives as San Diego already pays the highest residential electricity rates in the continental United States — approximately 45.7¢ per kilowatt-hour as of January 2026, more than double the national average. The Powerlink offers genuine grid reliability and renewable energy integration benefits: California's statewide electricity demand is officially forecast to more than double, to 160 gigawatts by 2045 — roughly one-third of current U.S. continental demand. But the project also carries serious risks: no locked-in cost estimate, a route through a state park previously rejected by the CPUC, SDG&E's explicit admission of eminent domain authority over private property, and a track record of utility projections that have historically overstated savings. Consumers have a narrow window — through early November 2026 — to influence the route and design before SDG&E files its formal CPUC application.
The Project: What Is Being Proposed?
The Golden Pacific Powerlink is a proposed 500-kilovolt (500,000-volt) overhead transmission line running approximately 145 miles from the existing Imperial Valley Substation near El Centro to a new substation at the border of San Diego and Orange counties — a location known as "North of SONGS," referring to the former San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station site. SDG&E would build, own, and operate the line itself; a separate company (originally Horizon West Transmission, a NextEra Energy subsidiary) is responsible for citing and building the new substation at the northern terminus.
At 500 kV, this is the highest-voltage class of transmission infrastructure built in California. The steel lattice towers required to carry the line would stand between 125 and 191 feet tall — the height of a 12- to 19-story building — and spaced roughly 1,400 to 1,800 feet apart, though spacing will vary with terrain and environmental constraints. SDG&E's principal engineer Miles Still confirmed at the May 12 open house that final spacing "will not be consistent across the entire route." The right-of-way would be 200 to 250 feet wide, though SDG&E is currently studying a 1,000-foot-wide corridor to preserve routing flexibility during the planning phase.
SDG&E is explicitly not responsible for citing or building the new "North of SONGS" substation — that responsibility was assigned by CAISO to a separate company. The new substation will carry both 230 kV and 500 kV interconnections and will function purely as a transmission substation, not a distribution facility. It will not directly feed homes; it connects into the regional 230 kV network already operating in the area. The exact endpoint location is still being determined.
The project originated through the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), a nonprofit grid operator whose board is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the State Senate. CAISO's 2022–23 Transmission Plan — a board-approved document released May 2023 — identified the need among 45 projects statewide as critical to meeting California's energy policy goals. SDG&E was assigned the transmission line in August 2025 after the original developer withdrew from that portion of the project.
Why SONGS Matters to This Conversation
A fact confirmed at the open house adds important context: the retired San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station once produced approximately 9% of California's total statewide electricity generation. Its closure in 2013 removed a massive baseload generation resource from the coastal grid — a resource that once anchored the north-of-San-Diego transmission network. The new substation proposed for the North of SONGS location is, in part, an attempt to re-establish a robust transmission hub in the same strategic location, this time fed by desert renewable generation rather than nuclear fission. This connection is not incidental: it underscores how much Southern California's grid has been structurally weakened by the SONGS shutdown and why planners see a new 500 kV corridor as necessary.
The Demand Case: California's Grid at a Crossroads
SDG&E's open house presentation made the demand forecasts more concrete than previous public materials. The state has officially projected that statewide electric demand will more than double — reaching 160 gigawatts by 2045. For perspective, SDG&E Project Director Erica Martin noted at the open house that 160 GW would equal roughly one-third of the entire continental United States' electricity demand today. That scale of growth requires substantial new generation capacity and — critically — new transmission infrastructure to move that generation from where it is produced to where it is consumed.
The demand surge is driven by electrification of transportation (EVs), heating (heat pumps replacing gas), industrial processes, and the rapid expansion of data centers and AI computing infrastructure. CAISO's planning documents, which inform the project's need, model these trends explicitly using population data, economic projections, energy efficiency assumptions, and generation resource mix from the California Energy Commission (CEC).
California's electric grid is under increasing pressure as demand for electricity continues to ramp up. You can think of the transmission grid as a network of pathways that move electricity from where it's generated to the places where people will use it. When there aren't enough of those pathways, they get congested just like traffic on a freeway.
The Solar Paradox: Why Daytime Overproduction Doesn't Solve the Problem
A recurring question at the open houses — why isn't existing solar capacity sufficient? — received a substantive answer. SDG&E's Senior Project Affairs Manager Bernardet Buckwitz explained the structural mismatch: solar generation peaks during midday hours, but California's highest electricity demand occurs between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m., when people return home, cook, turn on televisions, and charge vehicles. Battery storage has grown significantly but, as Buckwitz noted, "does not meet the demand of how much solar is produced because we have been so successful in implementing a ton of solar in California." The Powerlink would provide an additional transmission pathway to import generation from the broader desert Southwest grid — including Arizona solar, Imperial Valley geothermal, and New Mexico wind — during those critical peak hours. This is categorically different from the daytime overproduction problem; it is an evening delivery problem requiring transmission, not just storage.
What This Line Does — and Does Not — Do
SDG&E was direct on a point that has generated public confusion: the Golden Pacific Powerlink is not connected to any specific generation source, nor is it designed to serve any specific customer class, geographic area, or industry. It is a substation-to-substation transmission link — "electron neutral" in the words of project staff — connecting two nodes on the statewide grid. Power flowing across it could originate from solar farms, geothermal plants, wind turbines, gas peakers, or any other generator interconnected to the CAISO grid.
Specifically: the line will not directly serve Temecula, whose power supplier is Southern California Edison, not SDG&E. It will not serve data centers; SDG&E explicitly stated the project was not designed to supply any specific data center or industrial facility, responding to resident speculation that the line might serve planned AI computing campuses in the Imperial Valley. Everybody, in Martin's phrase, "uses the electrons that go across this line" — but nobody gets a dedicated feed from it.
The Route: A Segment-by-Segment Overview
SDG&E presented the most detailed public description to date of the preliminary 145-mile route corridor at the May open houses. While stressing that no final route has been selected and the 1,000-foot study corridor will narrow considerably during engineering and environmental review, the following segment-by-segment description reflects what was presented.
| Segment | Location / Features | Land Jurisdiction | Key Concerns |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 — Origin | Imperial Valley Substation (El Centro area); route heads northwest | BLM land; avoids El Centro Naval Air Station airspace/training areas | Military airspace coordination required |
| 2 — Fish Creek | East side of Fish Creek Mountains | BLM land | Rugged terrain; remote construction access |
| 3 — Anza-Borrego | Enters park; follows Hwy 78 corridor south of Borrego Springs; exits near Grapevine Canyon | California State Park (CDPR jurisdiction) | Largest, most contested segment; CPUC rejected similar route in 2008; dark sky park; tribal cultural resources |
| 4 — Warner Springs | Crosses Hwy 79; follows Hwy 79 northwest toward Warner Springs | Mixed private / USFS land | Tribal land proximity; hot air balloon operations; Temecula Creek biodiversity area |
| 5 — Palomar / Temecula | Palomar Mountain on the east; into Temecula area south of Hwy 79 | Private land; wine country; residential neighborhoods | Property values; tourism; visual impact; Temecula City Council opposition |
| 6 — I-15 Crossing | Crosses I-15; continues west; BLM land near De Luz Heights north of Fallbrook | BLM / private | Highway crossing; rural community impact |
| 7 — Camp Pendleton | Follows existing transmission infrastructure along northern Camp Pendleton boundary to new substation | U.S. Marine Corps (federal) | Federal agency coordination; FAA review for tower lighting/marking |
| 8 — Terminus | New 230/500 kV transmission substation near former SONGS site (San Diego–Orange County border) | TBD; built by separate company | Final location still under determination; not SDG&E's responsibility |
The route traverses four counties — Imperial, San Diego, Riverside, and Orange — and crosses multiple jurisdictions including Bureau of Land Management, California State Parks, U.S. Forest Service, Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base, tribal lands, and extensive private property.
The Cost Question: What Will You Actually Pay?
The most important number San Diego ratepayers need is also the most uncertain. CAISO's 2022–23 Transmission Plan placed the combined line-and-substation project cost at approximately $2.3 billion. SDG&E's own current range for the line alone is $1.3 billion to $2.2 billion. A formal preliminary cost estimate is expected by end of Q2 2026.
Why the 9% Share Exists
Open house testimony clarified the 9% consumer share calculation more precisely than any prior public statement. SDG&E's Bernardet Buckwitz explained: SDG&E represents approximately 9% of all CAISO-jurisdiction customers. Under CAISO tariff rules, costs for 500 kV transmission projects are socialized across all CAISO customers — not just SDG&E's service territory. CAISO covers roughly 80% of California's transmission lines, so the cost-sharing pool is large. The 9% is SDG&E's proportional share of that pool, based on customer count.
The remaining ~91% will be paid by customers of Southern California Edison, Pacific Gas & Electric, and other investor-owned utilities within CAISO's jurisdiction. Martin confirmed at the open house that SCE customers "all share the cost of maintaining, upgrading, and assuring that the transmission system provides reliable electricity to all places in the state."
Recovery Timeline: Decades, Not Years
In a direct response to public questions about bill impacts, SDG&E's Buckwitz confirmed that project costs will be recovered "across decades" rather than front-loaded into near-term rate increases — the standard amortization approach for large transmission assets. This is intended to moderate the per-bill impact but means ratepayers will be paying for this project well into the second half of this century. The utility acknowledged that "affordability is top of mind" but deferred specific per-bill impact calculations until the Q2 2026 cost estimate is complete and a final route is determined.
It is too early to assess bill impacts because we are in such an early phase of project development. We also don't have a project estimate at this point in time, and that's needed in order to understand what ultimately those cost impacts would be.
The Rate-of-Return Dimension
A separate but consequential financial development: SDG&E filed an unopposed settlement in its FERC Transmission Owner Rate Case (TO6 proceeding) on March 23, 2026, seeking to raise its authorized base return on equity on FERC-jurisdictional transmission assets from 10.10% to 10.28%, with a hypothetical capital structure of 54% equity. If approved by FERC (expected late 2026), this return structure would apply retroactively to June 1, 2025 — and would govern the earnings SDG&E receives on the Golden Pacific Powerlink if built. Every dollar of Powerlink capital investment would earn a FERC-guaranteed profit margin baked into future transmission rates, a financial structure that critics argue incentivizes large capital projects over lower-cost alternatives.
The Rate Context: Starting from the Worst Position
The Golden Pacific Powerlink is not being proposed against a backdrop of affordable electricity. San Diego ratepayers already carry the heaviest residential electricity burden in the continental United States.
| Metric | SDG&E / San Diego | California Average | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential rate (Jan 2026) | ~45.7¢/kWh (bundled) | ~34.7¢/kWh | ~16¢/kWh |
| Avg. monthly residential bill (2026) | ~$220–$235 | ~$160–$180 | ~$115–$130 |
| Rate increase, last 5 years | ~50% | ~35% | ~20% |
| Rate vs. national average | ~2.5× higher | ~2× higher | Baseline |
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed in a December 2024 study that SDG&E customers pay the highest electricity rates in the nation — exceeding even Hawaii. The typical SDG&E residential customer's monthly bill climbed to just under $200 in early 2026, driven by wildfire mitigation costs, infrastructure investment, and declining per-customer usage that concentrates fixed costs. SDG&E's annual profit more than tripled between 2007 and 2024.
Structure Technology: What You Would Actually See
Open house engineering presentations provided more detail than any prior public material on what the towers will look like. SDG&E's principal engineer Miles Still described six structure types currently under consideration — the final design will likely use several types in combination depending on terrain, visual impact, constructability, and maintenance requirements:
Self-supporting horizontal lattice: Four-legged steel lattice tower with conductors arranged horizontally at the bottom of V-shaped insulators. Requires no guy wires — secured by foundations only.
Guyed-Y delta lattice: A Y-shaped tower with guy wires extending to the ground for stability. Conductors in a delta (triangular) formation. More slender profile than the self-supporting type.
Self-supporting delta lattice: No guy wires; delta conductor formation with wider spacing. Self-supporting on foundations.
Self-supporting horizontal dead-end: Used where conductor tension must be terminated, as at angles in the route. Similar foundation approach.
Three-pole monopole: Three separate steel poles, one per conductor phase, each self-supporting. More visually open than lattice designs.
Tangent monopole: A single steel pole with conductors in a delta formation. The most slender and potentially least visually intrusive option for sensitive areas.
Still also noted that the project will incorporate OPGW (Optical Ground Wire) — a fiber-optic communications cable embedded in the overhead ground wire — providing both lightning protection and high-speed relay communications between substation equipment at each end. Still characterized this as a meaningful technological upgrade over older transmission designs.
The Light Pollution Question
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park holds international dark sky park designation. A question about tower lighting raised at the open house received a precise engineering answer: FAA marking and lighting requirements are triggered when structures or wires exceed 200 feet above ground. SDG&E's current design range of 125–191 feet means most towers would fall under that threshold. However, Still noted several engineering tools available to keep towers below the FAA threshold within the park: shortening span lengths between towers (allowing shorter towers), siting towers on side slopes to reduce apparent height from aircraft, and routing outside of known aviation flyways. These decisions will be made during detailed engineering with FAA input.
Wildfire Risk: A High-Voltage Concern in a High-Fire Region
Any new overhead high-voltage transmission line in San Diego's backcountry raises legitimate wildfire concerns. The Western Fire Chiefs Association documented that electrical power networks caused 19% of wildfires between 2016 and 2020 nationally. SDG&E's response at the open houses emphasized three points.
First, SDG&E claims its wildfire mitigation program is nationally recognized, encompassing system hardening, weather monitoring, vegetation management, and real-time coordination with fire agencies including CalFire, confirmed as a regular operational partner.
Second, and most significant for grid resilience: by routing the Powerlink in a geographically distinct corridor from both the existing Sunrise Powerlink and the Southwest Powerlink, SDG&E creates operational redundancy. If a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) event requires de-energizing one east-west corridor during high fire-risk weather, the other corridor remains available — meaning San Diego does not lose all import capacity simultaneously. Manager of Major Construction Melinda Keesee was direct at the open house: wildfire risk during PSPS events "is a really important reason why the route is in a new corridor and not in the same corridor as our existing major east-to-west transmission lines."
Third, the counterargument: a new 145-mile corridor also creates 145 more miles of potential ignition risk, running through some of the county's most fire-prone chaparral and desert grassland terrain. SDG&E's promised integration of wildfire prevention into "design, construction, and operations" remains a commitment without published specifics at this stage of planning.
Property Rights: Easements, Compensation, and Eminent Domain
The open houses produced the project's most direct statement on property rights — information that received little prior public attention. Senior Major Construction Project Manager Mark confirmed the following sequence:
As the route is finalized through the CPUC process, SDG&E will contact individual landowners along the chosen corridor to negotiate easements for tower structures, construction access, and ongoing vegetation management. The right-of-way would be 200–250 feet wide. SDG&E would assess fair market value for easements and compensate landowners for documented construction damages.
However, in response to a direct question at the open house, Mark also confirmed what many landowners fear: SDG&E does possess and may exercise eminent domain authority — the legal power to condemn private property if voluntary easement negotiations fail. The utility's stated preference is negotiated agreements, but it acknowledged the legal condemnation option exists and could be invoked.
Some property owners along the route corridor have already received survey letters from SDG&E. Project staff confirmed at the open house that receiving a survey letter does not mean your property will be impacted — surveys cover the broad study corridor, which will narrow significantly before any easement negotiations begin. However, if you have received such a letter and have specific concerns, SDG&E staff urged direct contact via the project email or website rather than waiting for the formal CPUC process.
EMF and Health: What the Science Says
Electric and magnetic field (EMF) health concerns generated multiple public questions at the open houses. SDG&E's Bernardet Buckwitz summarized the scientific consensus: medical and scientific research has been "unable to conclude any health risks from typical exposure to EMF." She emphasized that EMF from power lines represents extremely low frequency (ELF) non-ionizing radiation — categorically different from ionizing radiation such as X-rays or gamma rays. At typical residential setback distances, EMF levels from a transmission line are "generally similar to those found in your common household appliances."
SDG&E offers free magnetic field measurements and information resources to any interested customer. The towers' structural height — 125 to 191 feet — is itself a mitigation tool: it keeps the high-field zone of the conductors elevated well above occupied ground level, allowing fields to dissipate before reaching people on the surface.
Regarding schools specifically: SDG&E confirmed that the current preliminary route corridor does not pass over any schools, and stated the utility would not seek to route the line over school grounds.
The Anza-Borrego Problem: Environmental and Legal Risk
The most legally complex element of the project remains its proposed traverse of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park — California's largest at 640,000 acres. SDG&E acknowledged the sensitivity directly at the open house but maintained that bypassing the park entirely is "not feasible." Erica Martin offered a specific geographic explanation: the park has grown and expanded in size since the Sunrise Powerlink era — "a wonderful gift to the state," she said — making a southern bypass even more difficult than it was in 2008, when the park was smaller. The park now extends nearly to the international border, making a complete southern routing impractical without hitting already-congested existing infrastructure.
The Anza-Borrego Foundation's legal argument remains the most damaging challenge: the 2026 route through the park appears to use substantially the same corridor the CPUC rejected in 2008 during the Sunrise Powerlink review — a route the Commission found would create 52 significant unmitigable environmental impacts and require de-designation of State Wilderness. Specifically at risk are the Grapevine Canyon corridor, the Tamarisk Grove Campground area, and the Angelina Spring Cultural Preserve, an area protecting irreplaceable indigenous cultural resources.
SDG&E noted it has already begun engagement with California State Parks Department and the Anza-Borrego Foundation and has met with tribal partners for months. But the company also acknowledged that if the route passes through the park, it must obtain a right-of-way grant from California State Parks — a discretionary approval process that could itself block the route regardless of what the CPUC decides. Federal permits from the Bureau of Land Management (for the Imperial Valley segment), the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and potentially the U.S. Forest Service add additional layers of potential delay or denial.
SDG&E's original economic analysis for the Sunrise Powerlink projected $447 million in annual ratepayer savings — a figure subsequently cut to $142 million after calculation errors were identified during CPUC review. The Commission's own Administrative Law Judge initially recommended denying the Sunrise application. The project was approved 4-1 by the Commission with conditions. Consumers should expect similar analytical disputes — and the same procedural opportunities to challenge SDG&E's assumptions — during the Golden Pacific review process.
The Alternatives Question: What Else Was Studied?
CAISO has stated that multiple alternatives to the Golden Pacific Powerlink were evaluated — including reconductoring or upgrading existing lines — and that the new 500 kV line was determined to be the most cost-effective approach. However, the detailed comparative analysis has not been separately published in accessible form beyond the 2022–23 Transmission Plan itself.
At the open house, SDG&E's Erica Martin directed critics to the Transmission Plan document as the record of alternatives studied. Bill Powers of the Protect Our Communities Foundation has publicly argued that upgrading existing transmission technology — replacing conductors with high-temperature, low-sag conductors capable of carrying 50–100% more power on existing structures — could address a significant portion of the capacity need with far less environmental disruption. CAISO's response, delivered via spokesperson statement, is that such alternatives were studied and found less cost-effective. Consumers and environmental intervenors will have the opportunity to formally challenge this conclusion during the CPUC's environmental review process.
On underground construction: SDG&E confirmed at the open house that it will continue to evaluate undergrounding but characterized it as facing "significant challenges" for a project of this scale. The utility noted a counterintuitive environmental reality: underground installation requires continuous excavation across the entire corridor, creating far more extensive and permanent ground disturbance than discrete tower foundations — potentially causing greater harm to the sensitive terrain the undergrounding option is meant to protect.
Community and Tribal Concerns
Opposition to the Powerlink's proposed route spans environmental groups, municipalities, tribal nations, and individual property owners. Temecula City Councilmember Brenden Kalfus issued a formal statement opposing the route through the Temecula Valley. Residents cited threats to the area's hot air balloon industry — a concern that project staff addressed by referencing FAA aviation regulations that govern flight operations in any permitted corridor, noting that SDG&E would gather site-specific information to avoid creating new airspace hazards.
Imperial Valley residents expressed skepticism about receiving lasting economic benefits — permanent jobs or lower utility rates — from large infrastructure projects that traverse their communities. Their concerns echo a broader pattern: communities that bear the environmental and construction burden of transmission projects rarely see direct local rate or employment benefits.
Tribal consultation has begun, with SDG&E confirming it has met with tribal partners "months ago." Martin emphasized that cultural resources extend far beyond the visible boundaries of reservation land in this "culturally rich area." A formal, legally required government-to-government consultation process will begin after the CPUC application is filed, overseen by the CPUC and relevant federal agencies. Tribal objections could require significant route modifications.
Regulatory Timeline: Where Things Stand
– Mar 2026
What Consumers Should Watch For
The Q2 2026 cost estimate: SDG&E has committed to a preliminary cost estimate by end of Q2 2026. This will be the first data point that allows meaningful calculation of ratepayer bill impact. Watch for how route length assumptions and contingency margins are presented.
FERC TO6 settlement approval: The pending settlement (Docket ER25-270) will establish the guaranteed return on equity SDG&E earns on all its FERC-jurisdictional transmission assets. Approval is expected in late 2026. This is the financial foundation of SDG&E's incentive to build rather than upgrade.
The CPUC CPCN application: The formal filing — expected before year-end 2026 — triggers a 30-day formal protest period open to any member of the public. This is the single most important leverage point in the entire process and should not be missed by concerned ratepayers, landowners, or environmental advocates.
State Parks and tribal consultation outcomes: If California State Parks denies a right-of-way through Anza-Borrego, or if tribal consultation reveals unmitigable cultural impacts, the entire route may need to be reconsidered — at significant additional cost to ratepayers. Monitor CPUC docket communications and Anza-Borrego Foundation updates closely.
The detailed CAISO alternatives analysis: The full 2022–23 Transmission Plan is publicly available. Consumers and their advocates should review the alternatives evaluation methodology before the CPUC's environmental review process begins. Intervenors who identify analytical flaws in that alternatives analysis can formally challenge the project's need finding.
The SDG&E open house testimony confirms the genuine need case: California's grid faces a real and documented surge in electricity demand — doubling to 160 gigawatts by 2045 — and the Imperial Valley's renewable resources are strategically essential to meeting that demand. The loss of SONGS removed roughly 9% of state generation capacity from a coastal grid hub, and the Sunrise Powerlink, built to partly compensate, is now operating at full capacity. A new transmission corridor has a legitimate planning basis.
But the open house testimony also exposed the gaps consumers should not accept on faith. The utility cannot yet say what this project will cost, what it will add to monthly bills, or exactly where it will go. It has confirmed it can seize private property by eminent domain if negotiations fail. It is proposing a route through a state park that was rejected on nearly identical environmental grounds less than two decades ago. And the financial structure governing its earnings — a guaranteed rate of return on every dollar of capital invested — creates an institutional incentive to build large and expensive rather than rehabilitate existing infrastructure.
The regulatory process created by the CPUC and NEPA exists precisely to hold these competing interests in tension. San Diego ratepayers who engage now — during the public comment period, through formal CPUC protests when the application is filed, through elected representatives, and through community organizations — have the most leverage over a project they will ultimately fund across the next several decades.
How to Engage Before the Window Closes
- Comment period open through early November 2026. Submit feedback on the preliminary route at goldenpacificpowerlink.com or email GoldenPacific@sdge.com. SDG&E reads all submissions.
- In-person open houses are planned for summer and fall 2026. Watch the project website and SDG&E mailers for dates and locations.
- Request a community presentation: Organizations and civic groups can request an SDG&E representative to present to their membership. Contact via the project email.
- After the CPUC application is filed (expected late 2026), email the CPUC Public Advisor at public.advisor@cpuc.ca.gov or use the CPUC Docket Card system.
- File a formal protest within 30 days of the CPCN application. No legal representation is required; formal protests become part of the official record the CPUC must address.
- Monitor FERC Docket ER25-270 / ER26-632 at ferc.gov for TO6 settlement proceedings that govern SDG&E's return on transmission investment.
- Read the CAISO 2022–23 Transmission Plan — the founding document for this project — at caiso.com. The alternatives evaluation methodology is in that document.
- Track the Anza-Borrego Foundation's organizing hub at theabf.org/park-threat for legal updates and action opportunities.
Verified Sources & Formal Citations
-
Primary Source — SDG&E Open House Transcript
San Diego Gas & Electric. (May 12, 2026). Golden Pacific Powerlink Virtual Open House — Verbatim Transcript. 5:30 p.m. session. Speakers: Erica Martin (Director, Project Development); Melinda Keesee (Manager, Major Construction); Bernardet Buckwitz (Senior Project Affairs Manager); Miles Still (Principal Engineer); Gerard Ellison (Senior Environmental Project Manager); Mark [surname withheld in transcript] (Senior Major Construction Project Manager). [Primary source for this revision.] -
Primary News — East County Magazine
Pearlman, K. (May 15, 2026). "Hundreds attend SDG&E virtual workshops on proposed 145-mile Golden Pacific Powerlink as state champions grid resiliency." East County Magazine.
https://eastcountymagazine.org/sdge-outlines-145-mile-golden-pacific-powerlink-as-state-champions-grid-resiliency/ -
Primary News — KPBS Public Media
Murga, T. (April 30, 2026). "SDG&E says its proposed transmission line would meet growing power demand but opposition is growing." KPBS.
https://www.kpbs.org/news/environment/2026/04/30/ -
Primary News — KPBS Public Media
Hyson, K. (March 9, 2026). "Why your San Diego electric bill is so high right now." KPBS.
https://www.kpbs.org/news/economy/2026/03/09/why-your-san-diego-electric-bill-is-so-high-right-now -
Official Project Site
San Diego Gas & Electric / WSP. (2026). Golden Pacific Powerlink — Official Project Information Site.
https://goldenpacificpowerlink.com/ -
Environmental Opposition
Anza-Borrego Foundation. (April 2026). "Park Powerline Threat." theabf.org.
https://theabf.org/park-threat/ -
Environmental Opposition — East County Magazine
(April 28, 2026). "Anza-Borrego Foundation leads opposition to new Golden Pacific Powerlink." East County Magazine.
https://eastcountymagazine.org/ -
Official Regulatory Filing — CAISO
California Independent System Operator (CAISO). (May 18, 2023). 2022–2023 Transmission Plan — Board Approved.
https://www.caiso.com/documents/iso-board-approved-2022-2023-transmission-plan.pdf -
Rate Analysis
NRG Clean Power. (February 25, 2026). "San Diego Electricity Rates in 2026."
https://nrgcleanpower.com/learning-center/san-diego-electricity-rates/ -
Rate Analysis — CBS 8 / UCAN
CBS 8 San Diego. (December 15, 2025). "Typical SDG&E customers should expect a bump in their monthly bill in 2026." [UCAN interview with Edward Lopez, Executive Director.]
https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/ -
FERC Rate Filing — SEC/EDGAR
Sempra Energy (SDG&E). (March 23, 2026). Form 8-K: TO6 Offer of Settlement (FERC Docket ER25-270). U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1032208/000103220826000016/sresdge-20260323.htm -
CPUC Rate Proceedings
California Public Utilities Commission. (2026). "Electric Transmission Rates and FERC Proceedings." [Includes SDG&E TO6 Cycle 2 Annual Update, Docket ER26-632.]
https://www.cpuc.ca.gov/ -
SDG&E Cost of Capital Application
San Diego Gas & Electric. (2025). Application for Authority to Reset the Cost of Capital Mechanism — TY 2026. CPUC filing. [Proposes 11.25% ROE, 54% equity capital structure for distribution and gas assets.]
https://www.sdge.com/sites/default/files/regulatory/ -
Sunrise Powerlink Historical Record
Wikipedia contributors. (2025). "Sunrise Powerlink." Wikipedia. [Cites CPUC Decision 09-12-044; USFS and BLM approval records; cost and savings figures.]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunrise_Powerlink -
CPUC Historical Decision — Sunrise
California Public Utilities Commission. (October 31, 2008). "CPUC Issues Proposed Decisions in Sunrise Transmission Line Proceeding." CPUC News Release. [ALJ proposed denial; Commissioner Grueneich alternate; final 4-1 approval with conditions.]
https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PUBLISHED/NEWS_RELEASE/93078.htm -
Investigative / Historical
Voice of San Diego. (August 27, 2007). "The Partly Cloudy Powerlink." [Documents Sunrise savings projection revision from $447M to $142M annually.]
https://voiceofsandiego.org/2007/08/27/the-partly-cloudy-powerlink/ -
Community Opposition — Temecula
Patch Temecula. (May 2026). "Temecula Pushes Back Against Massive High-Voltage Power Project Planned Through The City." [Includes Councilmember Kalfus statement and resident comments.]
https://patch.com/california/temecula/ -
Ratepayer Advocacy
Public Watchdogs. (December 4, 2024). "SDG&E's electric rates are the highest in the nation." [Cites U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI data; SDG&E rates 2.5× national average.]
https://publicwatchdogs.org/sdges-electric-rates-are-the-highest-in-the-nation/ -
Hoodline / CPUC Stakeholder
Hoodline. (April 2026). "Desert Showdown As SDG&E Powerlink Plan Riles Borrego." [Includes CPUC stakeholder document references and cost range $1.3B–$2.2B.]
https://hoodline.com/2026/04/desert-showdown-as-sdg-e-powerlink-plan-riles-borrego/ -
Rate History
CalRegulatory.com. (January 1, 2026). "January 1, 2026 rate changes for PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E." [Analysis of SDG&E Advice Letter filings; wildfire costs, ERRA updates, weaker sales as rate drivers.]
https://www.calregulatory.com/january-1-2026-electric-rate-updates-pg-e-sce-and-sdg-e/ -
FAA Advisory Circular
Federal Aviation Administration. Advisory Circular AC 70/7460-1L: Obstruction Marking and Lighting. [Governs marking and lighting requirements for structures; relevant to tower height design at Anza-Borrego and other locations. Referenced in SDG&E open house testimony.]
https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_70_7460-1L.pdf
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