CPUC Approves Expansion into Colusa County, City of Colusa, and City of Williams
Rocklin, CA â Pioneer Community Energy (Pioneer), a locally owned not-for-profit electricity provider headquartered in Rocklin, California, announced that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved service expansion into Colusa County, the City of Colusa, and the City of Williams.
A total of 16 new member territories will join Pioneer in 2027, including the counties of Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Nevada, Sutter and Tuolumne, the cities of Chico, Colusa, Live Oak, Orland, Oroville, Sonora, Willows, Williams, and Yuba City, and the Town of Paradise. Pioneer plans to work with local leaders in each of the new communities to conduct a comprehensive community education and outreach effort in advance of the service launch.
“We are thrilled to bring the many benefits Pioneer offers to Colusa County, and the cities of Colusa and Williams â allowing these communities a choice in energy providers they’ve never had before,” said Pioneer Board Chair and Auburn City Councilmember Alice Dowdin Calvillo. “These communities are an excellent fit for Pioneer.”
Pioneer will purchase electricity (represented as the generation portion of customer bills), while Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) will deliver the energy through its lines and poles (represented as transmission and distribution on customer bills).
Upon approval by its Board of Directors, Pioneer submitted an amended Implementation Plan to the CPUC, which certified the plan on March 5, 2026. All required documents were submitted to the Secretary of State and State Controller’s Office earlier this month.
Pioneer began providing electricity service in 2018 in Placer County. Pioneer then expanded in 2022 to serve El Dorado County and the City of Placerville, followed by the addition of Grass Valley and Nevada City in 2024. This steady growth positions Pioneer for its planned 2027 expansion, which is expected to double its customer base and create the geographically largest community choice aggregator (CCA) in California.
Since launching in 2018, Pioneer has saved customers an estimated $145 million. Savings are reinvested in the communities Pioneer serves through economic development projects, local power purchase agreements, participation in community events, and the purchase of goods and services. Pioneer recently executed a Power Purchase Agreement for a solar generation and battery energy storage system project being built in Williams, Colusa County.
Find out more about Pioneer’s expansion at PioneerCommunityEnergy.org/expansion.
