We have been talking about the Energy Crisis in California for years, and now it is no longer an energy crisis. It is a national security risk to the entire Republic. Don’t take our word for it, but let’s look at 10 other huge stories from other publications. Stu Turley, David Blackmon, and Mike Ariza will be covering these and other stories on Friday on the Energy News Beat Podcast. And the cover picture sums up Gavin Newsom’s mind. The background of windmills and solar panels, and he is standing, looking more like Forest Gump, trying to plug in an EV next to a non-permitted oil well. – Just saying.
1. California’s Refinery Meltdown:
Losing 20% of Fuel Capacity While Gas Hits $5.30+California is staring down a self-inflicted fuel crisis. Valero’s Benicia refinery (170,000 bpd) is set to close in 2026, joining Phillips 66’s recent LA shutdown. That’s roughly 17–20% of in-state refining capacity gone in months. Gasoline prices are already topping $5.30/gallon statewide, and Chevron is warning of shortages that could leave San Francisco and Los Angeles without jet fuel.
The state’s 2045 fossil-fuel phase-out dream collides with reality: electrification + AI data centers are driving demand higher, not lower. Result? An “energy island” with fewer refineries, captive consumers, and no easy imports.
This isn’t market failure. It’s a policy failure.
Appendix – Bloomberg (Mar 24, 2026), CalMatters (Mar 13, 2026), Energy In Depth (Mar 31, 2026).
2. $5+ Gasoline & Sky-High Electricity: How Green Mandates Made California’s Energy Bill the Nation’s Worst
Residential electricity now averages ~30–36¢/kWh in California — 74% above the national average. Gasoline spikes are the latest symptom. Refinery closures + seasonal blend changes + wildfire-driven PSPS shutoffs have left the system with zero margin.
Cities like Petaluma and Morgan Hill just rolled back natural-gas bans after DOJ lawsuits proved the policies illegal and unaffordable. Even blue-city officials are admitting what physics already knew: you can’t electrify everything when the grid can’t keep up.
Appendix – EIA (Jan 2025 data updated 2026), Energy In Depth (Mar 31, 2026), OC Register (Feb 15, 2026).
3. Grid on the Brink: AI Data Centers + Electrification = 53% Demand Surge by 2045
Peak electricity demand is exploding from EVs, building electrification, and data centers. CEC now forecasts a 53% jump by 2045. Yet solar floods the midday market and disappears at dusk, leaving batteries (which catch fire — Moss Landing, Otay Mesa, Escondido) as the unreliable “solution.”
CAISO is scrambling with reliability-focused transmission, but the numbers don’t lie: the state is one multi-day heat wave or wildfire away from rolling blackouts.
Appendix – CEC (2026 outlook), Utility Dive (Feb 10, 2026), EDF Climate 411 (Feb 6, 2026).
4. Planned Power Shutoffs Are Back — And Schools Are Paying the Price
Southern California Edison’s Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) hit schools hard in 2024–2025 and are ramping up again in 2026. Riverside County districts lost class time, spent thousands on generators, and still face wildfire-risk blackouts.
This is the new normal: aging infrastructure + intermittent renewables = preemptive outages that hurt the very people green policy claims to protect.
Appendix – CalMatters (Feb 25, 2026), LAist (Feb 2026).
5. Nevada Just Cut the Cord: California’s Import Dependency Exposed
NV Energy told Liberty Utilities it will stop exporting power after May 2027 to protect its own customers and new industries. California’s “energy island” just lost another lifeline.
While the state lectures the world on net-zero, it quietly begs neighbors for power it refuses to build domestically.
Appendix – Energy News Beat (Mar 20, 2026).
6. Diablo Canyon Extension: The Nuclear Lifeline Politicians Tried to Kill
Newsom signed SB 846 to keep Diablo Canyon running until 2030 — reversing earlier closure plans. It’s California’s largest source of clean, dispatchable power, yet environmental groups still fight it. Without it, 2026 summer peaks would have been catastrophic.
One plant saved the grid. Imagine what new nuclear could do.
Appendix – Grok/X context + CEC reports.
7. Battery Fires & Solar Duck Curve: The Expensive Reality of “Clean” Energy
Moss Landing (300 MW) burned for days in early 2026; Otay Mesa and Escondido fires preceded it. Batteries cost billions, last only 4 hours, and still need gas peakers for the rest of the day. Solar output crashes exactly when demand peaks.
Ratepayers foot the bill for both the hardware and the backups.
Appendix – Multiple 2025–2026 fire reports + CAISO data.
8. National Security Threat: California’s Fuel Crisis Endangers Military Jet Fuel Supply
Valero’s closure directly hits military readiness. California supplies jet fuel for bases across the West. Chevron’s refinery chief called shortages his “worst fear.”
When your energy policy threatens national defense, it’s no longer just an environmental debate.
Appendix – National Today (Feb 27, 2026), Moneywise (Jan 2026).
9. Cities Roll Back Gas Bans: Even Progressives Admit the Electrification Dream Is Cracking
Petaluma and Morgan Hill repealed natural-gas hookup bans after DOJ intervention. High electricity prices (30¢+/kWh) made all-electric mandates unaffordable for working families.
The quiet admission that physics and economics still matter.
Appendix – Energy In Depth (Mar 31, 2026).
10. California’s Energy Transition Is Failing the Middle Class — Time to Admit It
Demand is rising, not falling. Refineries are closing. Rates are soaring. Blackouts loom. Yet Sacramento doubles down on 2045 mandates.
This isn’t a “transition.” It’s a controlled demolition of affordable, reliable energy — exactly like Germany’s Energiewende disaster.
Appendix – OC Register (Feb 15, 2026), Compton Chamber (Jan 2, 2026).Quick Interview Prep for Tomorrow (April 3, 2026) Open with: “Refineries closing, prices spiking, grid straining — California engineered this crisis.”
Key questions for guests: “Why keep shuttering refineries while demand explodes?” “How many more battery fires before we admit storage isn’t a silver bullet?” “At what point does national security trump ideology?”
Hammer the contrast: Germany blew up plants; California is shutting refineries and banning gas. Same ideology, same pain.
At some point, we have to ask whether Gavin Newsom is just the Forest Gump of Governors, or if he’s corrupt and this is intentional? I would posit that an audit of his bank accounts would determine whether he is “Energy Gump-like” or Corrupt.
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