Meet LA100: The Los Angeles 100% Renewable Energy Study (Text Version)

This is a text version of the video “Meet LA100: The Los Angeles 100% Renewable Energy Study.”

The video opens with a stylized animation of the Los Angeles power grid and the title LA100: The Los Angeles 100% Renewable Energy Study.

The video shows the LA skyline during sunrise, followed by shots of two LA families. The video cuts to shots of LA power lines and the city from afar at dusk.

Narrator: From the people … to the power grid, LA is a city like no other.

The video shows a montage of renewable energy technologies.

Narrator: And its leadership has set a bold goal to power LA with 100% renewable energy by 2045. 

The video shows an overhead shot of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's (LADWP's) John Ferraro Building, then cuts to shot of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) campus. The video cuts to a stylized animation of the words LA100: The Los Angeles 100% Renewable Energy Study.

Narrator: That's why the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power—the nation's largest municipal utility-- partnered with NREL—the nation's leading renewable energy research lab—on LA100.

The video shows shots of the LA power system, including a large solar array and distribution line maintenance.

Narrator: It's the most comprehensive, detailed study to model an entirely renewable-based grid as complex as LA's—and it's only possible with the uniquely integrated capabilities of a national lab.

The video cuts to a shot of the NREL 3D visualization room, then an animation of the LADWP power system.

Narrator: Energy analysts are running millions of simulations to inform objective answers to the big questions on the road to 100%.

The video cuts to a shot of an LA neighborhood, then a hand switching on a lightbulb and a crowd of people. The video then shows the Crenshaw electric vehicle and rooftop solar panels.

Narrator: How might demand for electricity change as more Angelenos adopt energy technologies like electric vehicles and rooftop solar?

The video shows a shot of downtown LA, then an LADWP-owned utility-scale solar plant. The video cuts to a sequence of shots of transmission lines and distribution lines.

Narrator: And what could LA's future grid look like? Does reaching 100% mean big changes locally—like building new transmission lines or power plants?

The video cuts to shots of fires.

Narrator: How can LA make sure that the new system is reliable under extreme events like fires and heat waves?

The video cuts to shots of an LADWP worker, a hiker in LA, a child using an inhaler, power plants, and LA City Hall.

Narrator: What about impacts on jobs, air quality, health, the local economy, and environmental justice?

The video shows hands counting money.

Narrator: And what might all of this cost?

The video cuts to a series of shots of NREL employees and LADWP employees in various utility control rooms and on power plant sites.

Narrator: Along the way, LADWP's engineers are learning how to use NREL's high-tech tools and datasets for their own analyses to convert the findings into workable, achievable plans best suited for LA. But LA100 isn't just about running models and crunching numbers.

The video cuts to shots of the LA100 study's Advisory Group, including at an LADWP-owned wind plant and in an LADWP boardroom. The video then shows an LA businessperson and an LADWP worker.

Narrator: Every step of the way, the research has been guided by real people who live and work in LA—making sure the study represents those who know LA best, from neighborhood and business representatives to policy and clean energy experts.

The video shows wind turbines, followed by shots of the LA community in the street and at a dinner table. The video then cuts to a shot of an LADWP wind and solar plant, followed by a group of LA people on a rooftop looking out at the skyline.

Narrator: The result? Objective insights, driven by data and tailored to LA's unique and diverse communities—so the city can be sure a 100% renewable future will benefit 100% of LA. 

The video shows people in a helicopter above an LADWP power plant, then cuts to a shot of a ground-mounted solar array.

Narrator: And so that other cities can follow LA's lead and apply what we've learned in tackling their own energy goals.

The video shows a man walking across a bridge in LA, and then a multigenerational family. The video cuts to an animated NREL logo with the words Transforming Energy and the URL nrel.gov/analysis/los-angeles-100-percent-renewable-study.html.

Narrator: Stay tuned for results in 2021, and learn more about LA100 on nrel.gov.