Loan for California’s Last Nuclear Power Plant Survives Budget Negotiations

Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers agree to include a $400 million loan in the state budget to Pacific Gas and Electric for the power plant to continue running.

Aerial view of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant which sits on the edge of the Pacific Ocean at Avila Beach in San Luis Obispo County, Calif., on March 17, 2011. Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images

After months of negotiations, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders agreed on June 22 to include a $400 million loan in the 2024–25 state budget to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), owner and operator of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, to continue running the plant.

Existing law allows for up to $1.4 billion in loans for the nuclear plant, of which $1 billion was already provided to PG&E by the Legislature in 2022 and 2023 to extend the life of the facility.