Transition Finance Weekly - April 2, 2026
Gas Driving Up Rates; Cali’s Anticipated Fire Study; LNG Blocked in Florida
1. National Lab Shows Gas Prices Contributing To Rising Energy Prices
Data shows natural gas is driving increases and volatility in energy prices.
A new analysis published by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and the Brattle Group on the state of electricity prices found that increases in the price of natural gas drove generation and wholesale electricity prices higher across the country. The effects, like most factors in electricity markets, were not evenly distributed across geographies.
The report found that electricity prices had been insulated from excessive price increases over a six year period from 2019-2025 as a result of low natural gas prices, but fluctuations in commodity prices drove significant volatility in electricity prices. States that received more of their electricity from natural gas saw significantly more volatility in annual electricity prices.
Natural gas exports will also worsen the price impacts of domestic natural gas use as more domestic producers seek to sell gas to the more expensive international markets, especially amid the U.S.-Iran conflict’s impact on energy markets.
In short, the report affirms that relying on volatile commodities for fuel is a vulnerability for cost control. Technologies like wind and solar, which don’t rely on fuels, are free from this vulnerability.
From the report: “In 2025, the national-average price of natural gas delivered to electric generators increased 36% from the all-time low in 2024, pushing generation costs and real-time wholesale electricity prices higher.”
2. La Plata Leaves Tri-State, Lowers Costs and Increases Clean Portfolio
The Colorado distribution cooperative is leaving the Tri-State Generation and Transmission to pursue local affordable clean generation.
On April 1, La Plata Electric Association, a Colorado-based distribution cooperative, exited its membership in the Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, its longstanding wholesale generation and transmission provider.
The move is expected to save La Plata 10% on its wholesale electricity costs and significantly reduce its emissions, savings realized through access to local clean generation, more market purchases, and an escape from legacy coal.
The move away from Tri-State has been long-planned: the two coops signed an agreement in 2024 to terminate the contract and shift towards a continued relationship via PPAs for 40 MW of firm capacity and 40 MW of solar.
In making their exit, La Plata in part took inspiration from the New Mexico Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, which pushed to leave Tri-State in 2016 and has since shifted to locally-sourced clean energy.
In the meantime, Tri-State has made strides toward improving its resource mix and finances: it secured $2.5 billion in New ERA funds for modernization, has moved to procure significant solar and storage, and has offered new local generation for members.
La Plata Board President Nicole Pitcher said, “This is exactly why we made the decision to leave. I was proud to be part of that Board vote, and we’re already seeing it pay off for our members with lower costs, stable rates, and a cleaner, locally controlled power supply.”
3. Energy & Data Centers Take Center Stage in Texas
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick & Speaker Dustin Burrows highlight energy and data centers as priorities for the next Texas legislative session.
On Friday, a day after House Speaker Dustin Burrows released his own list of priorities, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick asked state legislators to “study” a range of policy issues including energy and data centers ahead of the 2027 session. The Texas legislature does not hold regular legislative sessions in even years.
Specifically, Patrick is asking legislators to review transmission policy, assess the impact of existing policies on the Texas grid, and examine the impact of energy-intensive technologies on the grid. Patrick also wants to examine “renewable energy decommissioning,” a common talking point among anti-renewable advocates seeking to block clean energy.
Speaker Dustin Burrows similarly called on lawmakers to focus on energy issues, including developing microgrids and distributed energy resources, specifically as they relate to reliability and affordability for consumers.
4. California Resiliency & Insurance Study to Come Out April 7
The California Earthquake Authority will release a major study mandated by SB 254.
On Tuesday, the California Earthquake Authority is expected to release the outcome of a multi-month study into California’s insurance markets, utilities, and resilience in the face of ever-increasing climate-driven disaster risk, primarily from wildfires.
The CEA, which administers the California Wildfire Fund, was tasked with studying the state’s insurance market and resilience to catastrophes via SB 254, a major bill signed by Gavin Newsom in September 2025. Among other things, SB 254 also added $18 billion to the state’s Wildfire Fund, which faced near-depletion as a result of the 2025 Los Angeles fires.
More than 80 groups and stakeholders have submitted commentary to the CEA as part of the study, but it’s unclear what the body will recommend. A separate SB 254-initiated report, by the California Public Utilities Commission, called for sweeping reforms to California’s insurance system, including by reining in utility liability, more risk sharing and pooling across different risk profiles, and changing the responsibility for wildfire mitigation.
The SB 254 process has put a spotlight on the ways that climate-driven risks are reshaping the financial landscape, with taxpayers, ratepayers, and the insured (read: people) covering the tab across the board. Mapping these hidden climate costs makes it clear: fair and transparent investments in real, tangible risk reductions are crucial to California’s continued economic thriving.
5. MI, NY, MA — All Considering Virtual Power Plant Legislation
Lawmakers across the country are looking to allow the grid to take advantage of distributed, small-scale energy resources.
Last week, a Michigan Senate committee voted to advance SB 731, a bill that would establish a framework for implementing VPP programs in the state, tasking the Public Service Commission with adopting program requirements within one year. The bill’s backers say that the bill will allow the state to take advantage of its plentiful distributed energy resources.
Michigan’s not the only state moving on VPPs: a pair of bills in New York introduced in mid-March will require the utility and Department of Public Service to develop and deploy VPP programs if passed. In Iowa, legislators are considering legislation to require the Utilities Commission to develop VPP rules, and a Massachusetts bill would require utilities to develop VPPs.
Across the country, policymakers are increasingly turning to VPPs as a means of addressing immediate affordability challenges and capacity needs on the grid. Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger, who ran on energy affordability, signed a bill allowing Virginia’s electric cooperatives to deploy VPPs.
SPOTLIGHT: Florida Port Rejects LNG Bid
A week before the Space Coast successfully launched Artemis II to the moon, Port Canaveral Commissioners voted unanimously against selling a slice of Port-owned land to Berkshire Hathaway and Chesapeake Utilities, which sought to build an LNG liquefaction plant for the cruise and space industry. Liquefaction facilities also unlock the export of natural gas to international markets, further tethering U.S. gas prices to international market fluctuations.
The Port Canaveral Commissioners rejected the bid in part because the land is “a strategic port property,” and because of significant opposition from the community. The LNG facility would have been built less than a mile from hundreds of homes.
