Courtesy City of Richmond

Solar panels at the Richmond Civic Center roof installed in 2009.

After months of debate, San Francisco is one step closer to having a new electricity provider that would compete with Pacific Gas and Electric Company and offer 100 percent renewable power.

Two city agencies on Tuesday tentatively approved a draft of the plan, known as CleanPowerSF, and handed it off to the Board of Supervisors. 

The program would be run by Shell Corp., and would increase residents' monthly bills by anywhere from $9 to $75, depending on how much power they use. The program would initially provide enough electricity for 50,000 to 75,000 residential customers.

Environmental and jobs advocates had opposed the program until recently because it would not involve immediate construction of solar or wind farms. But that opposition dropped off this week after utility officials agreed to begin working immediately on a plan to construct such facilities, potentially creating nearly 1,000 jobs.

Tuesday's development follows two years of false starts for the program, which previously failed because no qualified companies were willing to take on the necessary financial risks. In response, city utility officials overhauled their approach in an effort to mimic a successful program in Marin, which has also partnered with Shell.

If CleanPowerSF launches but fails to attract customers, the city could be on the hook for up to $19.5 million in costs, under the terms approved Tuesday by the the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and San Francisco Local Agency Formation Commission.

After the hearing, activists expressed hope that the program would herald a new era of green jobs.

"This is not just green energy — this is a green New Deal," said Eric Brooks, a community and environmental activist who has led negotiations with senior utility officials.