1. Summary

These directions and guidelines, prepared by the Commission's Energy Division in consultation with staff of the California Energy Commission, are intended to place reasonable bounds on load and resource outcomes while developing the high-, medium, and low- incremental need procurement plans. We require the utilities to consider certain scenarios, and to make certain assumptions about state policy-making and the coming economic climate. We do this to provide the ability to compare the utility forecasts and Plans to aid in our consideration of the Plans. Utilities may also consider scenarios and outcomes not specifically required by this Ruling, but which reflect the utilities' own views of potential outcomes. Because one major element of uncertainty has to do with customer base, we expect that the Long-Term Plans will employ a risk management approach that, for example, incorporates long, mid, and shorter term commitments for meeting load in order to remain flexible to refine the resource portfolios in the shorter term as certainty increases.

We are requesting a number of scenarios representing different loads the utilities could be called upon to meet. The scenarios are defined specifically below. It is not necessary for the utilities to conceive a resource plan to meet each of those load scenarios. We will ask for Resource Plans for only three cases to be described below.