Meanwhile, it's unclear who might take the lead in energy planning. There is no one in control. That soon could present a problem for the county, says Kellan Fluckiger, an energy planner and vice president of the California Independent System Operator, a nonprofit public corporation charged with overseeing the reliability of power supplies statewide. Fluckiger says that by 2004, an exceptionally hot summer day could push San Diego County into power shortfalls. He notes that transmission lines typically take five years to construct.
None is under construction.
Thomas Williams, regional public affairs manager, says only that the company plans to replace the plant in Chula Vista by 2010. Some suggest that power companies are holding back, perhaps waiting for a crisis that would provide them with the financial incentive to build. Shames recalls the relatively simple days before the business of generating power was deregulated by California in 1998. The process back then might have been no less contentious, but the role of the California Public Utilities Commission was pre-eminent. The PUC, while remaining a power player, itself is struggling for definition.