The organization that manages California’s electrical network was not sufficiently prepared for a burning heat wave that led to rolling blackouts in a state already struggling with massive wildfires and a global pandemic, according to a New York Times report.
Driven power plants were either in production or producing below peak strength prior to Golden State’s record-breaking temperatures in mid-August, the Times reported, citing data from the dashboard maintained by the California Independent System Operator. Sites that generate 15% of the electricity on the California grid were completely offline.
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CAISO, as the organization is known, said in a letter to Govin Newsom of California. Gavin Newsom that it is still trying to understand exactly why the waves of blackouts on August 14 and 15 became necessary, but admit that “capacity shortages play a big role.”
Peak requirements for those days, which had triple-digit temperatures, “were high but not above comparable hot days in previous years,” the agency wrote. “Our organizations will need to take a deep dive into the extent to which we ensure adequate power supply, and will make changes to our reliability rules to ensure reliability resources are available to address unexpected networking situations.”
The Otay Mesa power plant in California on August 17, 2020. (Bing Guan / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The rolling blackouts that CAISO ordered were the first in almost 20 years.
The state’s three largest utilities – Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric – shut down power to more than 410,000 homes and businesses for about an hour at a time until the emergency was declared 3 1/2 hours later. some.
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The state tried to prepare for the expected increase in electricity consumption by urging persistence and buying more power, but a building with high pressure Water System over Western states meant that there was less available.
“We agree that the power outages the Californians are experiencing this week are unacceptable and unreasonable from our state and the people we serve,” the agency wrote in its letter to Newsom.
The agency also warned the governor preemptively that it expects “the demand for energy will remain high if the current heat wave remains.”
California could face another shortage of power on Monday, August 24, the agency warned, noting that it “will do everything possible to prevent service disruptions.”
The last time the state ordered rolling stock was during an energy crisis in 2001. Blackouts, which occurred several times from January to May, included one that affected more than 1.5 million customers.
The cause was a combination of energy shortages and market manipulation by energy wholesalers, shamefully including Enron Corp., which brought prices up by holding supplies.
CAISO did not immediately respond to a request for comment from FOX News.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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