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Welcome to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) website for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review of the proposed LS Power Grid California, LLC (LSPGC) Power Santa Clara Valley Project (Project). LSPGC filed an Application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity Authorizing Construction of the Project on April 29, 2024 (Application A.24-04-017). This site provides access to public documents and information relevant to the CEQA review process.

Introduction and Background

LSPGC, in its CPUC application (A.24-04-017), filed on April 29, 2024, requests a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) for the Construction of the Power Santa Clara Valley Project . The CPUC conducts a thorough Environmental Review process as part of the CPCN procedure. This regulatory process evaluates whether there is a demonstrated need for a proposed utility project in the public interest. The CPUC accesses factors such as demand forecasts, environmental impacts and alternatives before granting or denying the certificate.

The Project would include two new high-voltage direct current (HVDC) terminals and associated new transmission lines. The new transmission lines would include an approximately 13-mile Grove to Skyline 320 kilovolt (kV) direct current (DC) underground transmission line connecting the southern terminal, the Grove terminal, to the northern terminal, the Skyline terminal; an approximately 100-foot overhead Skyline to San Jose B 115 kV alternating current (AC) station tie line connecting the new Skyline terminal to the existing Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) San Jose B substation; and an approximately 1.2 mile Metcalf to Grove 500 kV underground transmission line connecting the new Grove terminal to the existing PG&E Metcalf substation. The Project would be located in the City of San Jose and County of Santa Clara, California.

The application includes the Proponent’s Environmental Assessment (PEA) prepared pursuant to Rule 2.4 of the CPUC's Rules of Practice and Procedure. The Proposed Project was approved by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) to ensure the reliability of the CAISO-controlled grid. This would be accomplished through the construction of two new high-voltage direct current (HVDC) terminals and a new HVDC transmission line connecting the terminals.

As identified by LSPGC, the project would:

  • Ensure reliability of the South Bay sub-area of the Greater Bay Area of the CAISO-controlled grid;
  • Provide better access to cost-effective, renewable energy and other electric transmission grid benefits;
  • Support the provision of safe, reliable, and adequate electricity service to the PG&E and Silicon Valley Power (SVP) service territories;
  • Provide voltage support to the existing PG&E transmission system to support additional load growth; and
  • Facilitate the importation and use of renewable electricity to fulfill the State of California’s energy policies and goals by ensuring reliable operation of the grid.

    • Environmental Review


    As the CEQA Lead Agency, the CPUC will prepare an EIR to evaluate the environmental effects of the proposed project. The following table includes milestones and anticipated dates for the CEQA review process.

    Project Milestones as of May 2024
    Milestone Date
    Application and PEA submitted by LSPGC to CPUC April 29, 2024
    Deficiency Letter Issued by CPUC to LSPGC May 29, 2024
    Application Deemed Complete by CPUC TBD
    Notice of Preparation and Scoping
    		TBD
    Publication of Draft EIR TBD
    Public CEQA Review Period (30 days) TBD 
    Publication of Final EIR TBD 
    CPUC Adoption of Final EIR and Approval of the Project TBD
    Start of Construction (anticipated) TBD 

    Documents Available for Review

    Public documents related to the Proposed Project and PEA for the Power Santa Clara Valley Project can be found here:

    LSPGC CPCN Application (April 29, 2024)

    Proponent’s Environmental Assessment PEA (April 29, 2024)
    PEA Appendix 1-A Figures
    PEA Appendix 3-A Construction Equipment and Workforce Table 

    PEA Appendix 5.3-A Air Quality and GHG Modeling Files
    PEA Appendix 5.4-A Biological Resources Technical Report
    PEA Appendix 5.5-A-E Cultural Resources Technical Report (confidential not posted)
    PEA Appendix 5.6-A Fuel Use Calculations
    PEA Appendix 5.7-A Paleontological Resources Technical Report
    PEA Appendix 5.9-A ERIS Corridor Report (HazMat)
    PEA Appendix 5.9-B Hazardous Materials Sites Summary Table
    PEA Appendix 5.9-C Preliminary Induction Study
    PEA Appendix 5.13-A Noise Measurements
    PEA Appendix 5.16-A Existing Recreational Uses Table
    PEA Appendix 5.18-A Sacred Lands File Search Request and Results, Appendix B NAHC Contacts List and Appendix C Tribal Communication (confidential not posted)
    PEA Appendix 5.20-A Wildfire Behavior Modeling and Hazard Assessment
    PEA Appendix 7-A Cumulative Projects Table
    PEA Appendix C Map of the Project
    PEA Appendix G Electric and Magnetic Fields Management Plan

    CPUC PEA Deficiency Letter (May 29, 2024)  

    For Additional Information

    The CPUC, through its Environmental Review Team, is managing the environmental review of the Project. To request additional information, or to be added to the mailing list, please contact us:

    Project email: PowerSCV@esassoc.com

    The CPUC’s Project Manager is:

    Tharon Wright
    California Public Utilities Commission
    Infrastucture Planning and CEQ, Energy Division 
    300 Capitol Mall
    Sacramento, CA 95814

    Project email: tharon.wright@cpuc.ca.gov