OAKLAND >> After a meeting punctuated by angry comments and heckling, PG&E customers can expect higher bills after the state Public Utilities Commission on Thursday approved money to operate California’s only nuclear plant.

The Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, an aging facility perched on a scenic stretch of the San Luis Obispo County coastline, had been slated to be phased out in 2025 and 2026. Concerned about the prospect of energy shortages without it, however, California officials embarked on a quest led by Gov. Gavin Newsom to keep the complex open.

Diablo Canyon will now remain open in order to provide a reliable flow of electricity in California as it navigates toward a clean energy future. In response, monthly PG&E bills are slated to rise by an average of more than $3 a month for the typical residential customer, the power company estimated Thursday.The issue of steadily climbing PG&E monthly bills is so contentious that the state commission — in a rare departure from form — failed to unanimously approve the item to grant PG&E the increased revenue. The state panel voted 4-1 to approve PG&E’s ability to recover its recent, current and near-future costs of continuing to operate Diablo Canyon.

Public Utilities Commission Commissioner Darcie Houck was the lone vote against. She said the matter was complex enough to avoid rushing to give final approval on the matter, especially considering soaring monthly bills already being paid by PG&E customers.

“We are in an unprecedented affordability crisis in California,” Houck said during Thursday’s meeting, suggesting a postponement. “I am trying to understand what we are actually approving.”

Oakland-based PG&E believes Diablo Canyon is poised to play an essential role in smoothing California’s path to an energy future that depends much more on electricity and clean energy rather than natural gas and fossil fuels.

“PG&E is meeting the state’s call to extend Diablo Canyon generation operations for the benefit of electric reliability,” said PG&E spokesperson Suzanne Hosn. “Continuing to operate Diablo Canyon is the most cost-effective way available now to help maintain the reliability of California’s electricity grid.”

The two nuclear reactors at the power plant provide massive amounts of electricity for California.

“Diablo Canyon produces enough safe, reliable, and affordable clean electricity 24/7 to meet the energy needs of more than 3 million Californians,” Hosn said.

Long-term, based on an array of factors, some of which are estimates, PG&E customers could experience a benefit of $3.5 billion over an extended period of time from 2024 through 2030, according to Hosn.

For now, however, residential customers will pay an additional $3.20 a month, or a 1.5% increase, starting Jan. 1, 2025.

The prospect of higher bills infuriated numerous members of the public who provided comments on Thursday for the Public Utilities Commission meeting in San Francisco, a session that ran for hours due to several complex and controversial items on the agenda.

Many speakers directed their ire at the investor-owned utility, Newsom, the state Legislature, and the commission, which is tasked as PG&E’s official watchdog and supervisor.

“PG&E, PUC, and Gavin Newsom, take notice, the people are rising up,” said Kelly Buster, president of Stop PG&E, an advocacy group. “It’s time we take back our power.”

Several customers told the commission they have simply decided to shiver in what has become a chilly winter in many parts of northern and central California rather than run their heaters to warm up.

“I can’t afford PG&E,” said Lindsey Billings, a customer. “I have to put three blankets on the bed to stay warm. But we are organizing and getting bigger and bigger. We are coming for you guys.”

Small business owners joined the chorus of disdain.

“My PG&E bill equals more than all of my other expenses combined,” said Terry Frazier. “You are puppets who are being controlled by the corporations.”

Prior to the meeting, Public Utilities Commission Commissioner and President Alice Reynolds expressed her hope that people could find joy during the holidays. Several speakers mocked those well wishes during the meeting.

“I hope you have the worst Christmas ever,” one speaker shouted at the commission.

Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, and a harsh critic of both the commission and PG&E, noted that PG&E has received approval from the state regulators for several increases in monthly bills.

The Diablo Canyon decision marked the fifth rate increase in 2024 for PG&E, the group stated.

“The relentless rate hikes requested by PG&E and approved by the CPUC are crippling California’s working families,” said Cook, a resident of San Anselmo in Marin County. “Despite years of promises to address its financial mismanagement, PG&E, with the complicity of its captive regulators, continues to pass the costs onto its customers.”