Standing in front of a powerplant nearing completion, California Gov. Gray Davis (D) on Feb. 8 unveiled a program to speed up permitting and construction in his power-starved state and named an energy construction czar to drive the program. Declaring, "We are moving heaven and earth," Davis said his goals are to add 5,000 Mw to the state's capacity by this July, 5,000 Mw more by 2002 and 20,000 Mw by summer 2004.
Industry observers are hopeful, but are reserving judgment about the effectiveness of the various moves by Davis and the state legislature. "There's a tremendous amount of effort moving in the right direction, but it's difficult at this point to tell" whether it will move construction and permitting ahead fast enough, says Thomas T. Holsman, executive director of the Associated General Contractors of California.