Energy Democracy

By Jean Tepperman - East Bay Express, July 31, 2019; (image by Paul Haggard)

A new project in West Oakland and Jack London Square aims to achieve many goals at once: saving money, providing local jobs, fighting climate change, reducing toxic air pollution, and cutting electricity bills for hundreds of low-income households. East Bay Community Energy, the region's new clean energy provider, recently signed contracts with three companies to deploy an array of new batteries that will replace a jet-fuel-powered "peaker plant," which is now fired up when the demand for electricity is unusually high.