​Power sources

SMUD has been a leader in solar power for over 30 years and has continued to be a solar pioneer. Our Rancho Seco Solar project is a prime example of how we're sourcing more renewable energy and looking towards a sustainable future. 

In fact, our resource portfolio includes over 340 MW of solar generation. That’s enough to power over 90,000 homes annually – based on 750 kWh/month average household electricity use.

We added 100 MW of new solar in 2021 and will be adding almost 600 MW by 2026.

We’re proud that both our East Campus-Operations Center and our Downtown Headquarters campus generate solar power onsite to minimize our own local impact on the electric grid.

Solar for your home

More than 28,000 SMUD customers operate rooftop solar panels totaling 210 MW of renewable capacity.

We're investing over $20 million in the next few years on infrastructure and software updates to be able to manage and accommodate the expected increases in renewable energy resources such as rooftop solar.

We also understand some customers are looking for ways to consume more of the solar energy they’re producing, so we’re offering incentives for those with qualified battery storage. 

See if solar is right for you

Wind power is another highly economical resource. The Delta breezes of Solano County produce electricity that could serve electricity needs equivalent to over 68,000 households – based on 750 kWh/month average household electricity use.

Located in the Montezuma Hills near Rio Vista, our Solano wind farm was developed in 1994 and continues to expand. The 3 sites in operation have 107 turbines and produce 230 MW of clean power.

In 2019, we began receiving energy under contract for 200 MW of wind energy from wind-rich regions of New Mexico delivered to California. We will also continue to explore opportunities to add new turbines and upgrade older turbines at our Solano wind farm. By 2022, we’ll add 300 megawatts of new wind.

We study the wind patterns and pick the best spots for the turbines, making sure they take full advantage of the winds that whip in from the coast, squeeze through the Carquinez Straits, and spill into the Delta. Our Solano site is considered one of the best locations in all of California for wind generation.

SMUD's Upper American River Project (UARP), with 11 reservoirs and 9 powerhouses, is the cleanest and most economical and flexible power source we have.

Unlike power plants that run on fossil fuels, hydroelectric powerhouses emit no carbon dioxide. Plus, the same “fuel” is used over and over again as water flows downstream from one powerhouse to the next.

Every inch of rain at the UARP results in a savings of about $1.2 million. In a normal water year, the UARP provides approximately 16% of SMUD’s power needs. An additional 6% of our generation is provided by two hydro power contracts, allowing us to meet a total of about 22% of our total power needs with carbon-free hydro generation.

Operating and maintaining our hydro facilities requires a license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). A new 50-year license was issued in July 2014.

Biomass power

Biomass is the energy stored in plants and other organic materials, including agriculture waste (like cow manure), forestry waste, food waste and wastewater. It can also be converted to renewable natural gas and used to decarbonize natural gas power plants.

Dairy digesters are just one way to use biomass to produce renewable energy. They also reduce greenhouse gas emissions, bring better manure management, reduce odor and flies, and help improve air and water quality. Five of California’s 15 digesters are operating in SMUD’s service territory, by far more than anywhere else in the state.

Geothermal power

Geothermal energy is a constant power source, unlike intermittent wind and solar energy. Electricity is generated from steam that’s produced by heat in the earth's crust.

We have a history of Geothermal since the early 1980s and now receive 52 MW annually through contracts in California and Nevada. That’s enough to power more than 38,000 homes per year – based on 750 kWh/month average household electricity use.

Our East-Campus Operations Center uses a form of geothermal heating. The system uses a network of underground pipes to move heat from the ground into the buildings in the winter. Underground, the temperature stays relatively constant year-round. In the summer, it pulls the heat out of the buildings and releases it back into the ground.

SMUD's gas plants make both economic and environmental sense for Sacramento. Our Cosumnes, Campbell, Procter, Carson and McClellan power plants have a combined capacity of 1000 megawatts.

The Power Content Label (PCL) compares SMUD’s generated and purchased power to the State of California power mix. Our energy supply is getting cleaner all the time as we move toward our goal of zero carbon in our power supply by 2030.

In 2023, our power was about 78% carbon free, partially due to improved hydro generation for the year which can fluctuate year to year.

In December 2019, the California Energy Commission (CEC) revised the PCL rules, prohibiting inclusion of unbundled renewable energy credits (RECs) under the renewable categories of the PCL, but included as a separate line item labeled “Percentage of Retail Sales Covered by Retired Unbundled RECs.”

As a result, the renewable category percentages reflected in the PCL differ from what SMUD reports under California’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). 

Unbundled RECs support renewable generation and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and qualify to meet our RPS program obligation.

Since 2019, purchases from certain Pacific Northwest systems are disaggregated by fuel type for reporting based on the system’s actual power mix as provided by the CEC. While the vast majority of resources in these systems is hydro, a small amount is nuclear and results in a very small amount of nuclear in the SMUD General Mix.