San Diego’s Regional Cleantech Economy

CLEANTECH SAN DIEGO WAS FOUNDED IN 2007:

• Mission: To accelerate clean technology innovation and promote the equitable deployment of sustainable solutions across the San Diego region for the benefit of theeconomy, the environment, and all members of the community.

 

SAN DIEGO’S CLEANTECH ECONOMY:

• San Diego region ranks #9 U.S. Cleantech Innovation Hub (2021)
• San Diego region ranks #16 global startup ecosystem (Startup Genome Report: Cleantech Edition, 2023)
• San Diego’s cleantech sector supports nearly 40,000 jobs
• San Diego’s cleantech economy has an economic impact of  $8.8 billion
• San Diego became the largest American city to pursue a clean energy community choice program
• Ten cities in San Diego County have adopted Climate Action Plans
• FACT SHEET: City of San Diego Climate Action Plan (pdf)
• REPORT: The San Diego Cleantech Landscape (pdf) (Clean Edge)

 

ENERGY STARTUPS:

• Awarded $5 million over five years from the California Energy Commission to develop the Southern California Energy Innovation Network (SCEIN) (2016). The Energy Commission granted follow-on funding to the SCEIN program in 2021 to extend it for another five years.
• To date, 73 companies have been served by SCEIN, 36 of which are currently active in the program. Together, these startups employ 812 people, have had 469 patents approved, and have raised over $418 million in follow-on funding from public and private sources since being accepted into the program. 86 percent of SCEIN companies have female, minority, or veteran representation on their C-Suite leadership teams.  (2023)

 

REGIONAL RANKINGS:

• San Diego ranks nation’s #4 metro city for cleantech leadership (Clean Edge 2017)
• Cleantech San Diego is a Smart Cities Readiness Challenge Award winner (Smart Cities Council, 2019)

 

SOLAR:

• The San Diego region has a 16 percent solar rooftop penetration
• San Diego is #2 in the nation in solar installations (Environment America, 2022)
• The San Diego region is home to 9,400 jobs in the solar industry
• The San Diego region has 351 MW of solar installed (California Solar Initiative, 2019)
• California is #1 in solar jobs and employs 78,116 solar workers (The Solar Foundation, 2022)

 

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION:

• San Diego County developed an Electric Vehicle Roadmap to help boost EV use in the region (2019)
• U.S Department of Transportation designated San Diego and Chula Vista as proving grounds for self-driving cars and drones
• San Diego County has 70,095 electric vehicles on the road supported by 2,365 public charging stations plus 3,400 SDG&E owned charging stations.

 

ENERGY STORAGE:

• SDG&E runs the world’s 2nd largest lithium-ion battery 
storage facility
  • 30 MW, 120 MWh facility/capable of 
serving 20,000 customers for four hours
• 1,911 energy storage projects equaling 34 MW of capacity have been completed in San Diego County (Center for Sustainable Energy, 2019)
• Over $117 million of incentives for projects in SDG&E territory

 

K-12 SCHOOLS SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY COLLABORATIVE:

• Cleantech San Diego and SDG&E engaging San Diego’s 45 school districts to gain maximum benefit from Prop 39 by expediting the application process and sharing best practices
• $120 million granted to San Diego for energy upgrades at 468 schools
• 44 million kWh annual electricity savings
• 13 MW demand reduction

 

UC SAN DIEGO MICROGRID:

• One of the world’s most advanced microgrids
• Generates 85% of campus electricity
• $8 Million+ in annual savings

 

SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT:

• One of the first major U.S. airports to implement a sustainability policy
• Operating first-in-industry Innovation Lab
• Microgrid (among first at a North American airport) delivers 80% renewable electricity
• Aggregated building data analytics systems maximize efficiencies across campus
• World’s first LEED Platinum commercial terminal
• At least LEED-Gold certified on all new buildings since 2009
• Parking Plaza has advanced parking guidance technologies, extensive EV charging, and a storm water harvesting system    

 

PORT OF SAN DIEGO:

• Among first ports in the nation to adopt a Climate Action Plan
• Advancing regional smart city goals through Internet of Things energy efficiency demonstration project at Port Administration Building
• 23 streetlight sensors viewing real-time traffic
• Deploying smart kiosks along the bay front
• Building microgrid at Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal
• Commercial solar project to power B Street Cruise Ship Terminal
• Sustainable Freight Demonstration Project
• Installing EV charging for port employees

 

CITY OF CHULA VISTA:

• Developing Smart Bayfront
• Adopted award-winning Smart Cities Strategic Action Plan
• Designated by U.S. Department of Transportation as a proving ground for autonomous vehicles and drones
• Created Traffic Signal Communications Master Plan
• Deploying smart lighting pilot project

 

MILITARY:

• San Diego has the largest concentration of military personnel in the world
• Committed to advancing its renewable energy portfolio
• Advanced microgrids at Camp Pendleton and three Navy bases
• Using energy storage to optimize microgrids
• Goal of energy and water security and independence

 

SCRIPPS INSTITUTION OF OCEANOGRAPHY:

• 120-year-old San Diego institution
• Keeling Curve: Scripps scientists first sounded the alarm 65 years ago about climate changes that could affect every aspect of life on Earth
• Today, Scripps continues to be the world leader in climate change research
• Leading local and global efforts to understand and protect our planet

 

*Updated July 2023

 

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