The former US administration finalised a $15 billion loan to Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) on January 17, 2024, to boost hydropower generation and battery storage, upgrade electric transmission lines, and deploy virtual power plants throughout the utility’s service territory in northern and central California.
The loan, finalised one month after a conditional commitment for the PG&E Corporation subsidiary was announced, is the largest ever closed by the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO). The former administration expects the slate of PG&E investments, called Project Polaris, to support thousands of ongoing construction and operations jobs. In November 2024, the company increased its five-year capital spending plan to $63 billion to help meet electricity demand from data centres, electric vehicle charging, and other large loads.
All investment loans, including the above, under the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment programme, have lower interest rates than traditional capital market financing in exchange for passing savings on to customers.
The LPO separately announced $23 billion in conditional utility loan commitments through the programme, part of a flurry of funding awards for clean energy projects in the closing days of the former US administration.
The new US energy secretary has promised to consider pausing all new DOE loans in response to an inspector general report that found conflicts of interest at the LPO.