CEC’s Electrification Summit Builds Clean Energy Partnerships Among Policy Leaders, Manufacturers, and Utilities

By Media Office Staff

More than 500 people came together in the California Natural Resources Agency Headquarters Building in Sacramento for the 2025 CEC/EPRI Electrification Summit.  

During the event, speakers and attendees from the building industry, heat pump manufacturing, government, and other backgrounds gathered to learn and collaborate about electrifying buildings and industry in California.  

The summit, which took place March 11 and 12, was hosted by the California Energy Commission (CEC) and EPRI, a non-profit research and development organization that aims to enhance the quality of life by making electric power safe, reliable, affordable and environmentally responsible. Plenaries and discussions covered topics from the adoption of heat pumps and refrigerants with lower global warming potential, to rebuilding after wildfires, industrial decarbonization, and incentive programs for environmental justice communities. The focus was on implementing strategies discussed at the 2023 summit and growing relationships to make that happen. 

“The purpose of this summit is to continue to build partnerships. Our decarbonization policy in the state has not changed. We need to accelerate implementation. We need to do more, better and faster,” said CEC Commissioner Andrew McAllister. 

CEC Chair David Hochschild moderated a fireside chat with Liane Randolph, Chair of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and Alice Reynolds, President of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).   

Despite a growing nationwide concern about clean energy progress slowing or reversing, Hochschild noted that California made some of its biggest strides toward its clean energy future during and immediately following the first Trump administration, including passing the 100% Clean Energy Law, setting the carbon neutrality goal, and updating building energy efficiency standards. 

 “Electricity from the grid is cleaner than it’s ever been, with almost two-thirds of electricity in California coming from clean sources,” he said. 

He also pointed out that over 80 percent of new construction in California is all electric, which CEC staff expanded on, explaining that 81 percent of residential line extension requests by builders to PG&E and SDG&E were electric-only, with 75 percent of commercial line extension requests also electric-only. Together, 80 percent of residential, commercial, and mixed-use building line extension requests by builders to PG&E and SDG&E were electric-only. 

California’s progress in the electrification of its buildings and programs, and ensuring efficiency projects are funded equitably were some of the reasons the state came out on top of the 2025 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), which was announced March 18. 

California was ranked number one -- for the seventh time -- out of all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Rankings were based on efficiency-related policy areas including buildings, transportation, appliance standards, and grid resilience.  

Despite energy efficiency improvements, growth of electricity use for homes, vehicles, and industry heightens the importance of reliability and cost. EPRI Vice President David Porter reminded summit attendees that electricity “enables so much in everyone’s daily lives that sometimes we take it for granted. We have to remember not only how important it is but also stay focused on ensuring that as a commodity, it stays affordable for everyone who needs to access it.”  

Recordings from the event can be found on these web pages: Day 1 and Day 2. 

Photos of the event, including the technical showcase, are available at the CEC’s Flickr album, here: Electrification Summit 2025 | Flickr