{"id":263224,"date":"2023-06-21T19:42:22","date_gmt":"2023-06-21T17:42:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=263224"},"modified":"2023-06-21T19:42:25","modified_gmt":"2023-06-21T17:42:25","slug":"wind-dependency-get-ready-for-blackouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=263224","title":{"rendered":"Wind Dependency: Get Ready For\u00a0Blackouts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Brian Avery, right, Cathy Jackson walk on the pier amid torches that burn outside the Docks Entertainment Complex near Cherry Street on Thursday. Lucas Oleniuk\/Toronto Star Key words: Blackout Toronto special edition 2003<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Powerline<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By \u00a0JOHN HINDERAKER<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You can\u2019t replace reliable energy (coal, nuclear, natural gas) with unreliable energy that most of the time produces nothing (wind and solar). If you do, the electric grid will fail and there will be blackouts. That is the situation we are in today. Isaac Orr<\/a> writes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

On Wednesday, May 17th, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) issued its 2023 Summer Reliability Assessment. Summarizing the report, Utility Dive noted that \u201cMost of the United States will face an elevated risk of blackouts should summer weather turn extreme.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Which, of course, it will at some times and in some places.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Demand for cooling and the performance of wind and solar resources will be key factors in the grid\u2019s performance. The situation has been exacerbated by demand growth and the retirement of coal and nuclear power plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of the areas of the country appear to have enough reliable power plants online to meet normal summer peak electricity demand, according to the NERC report, but most of the country will \u201cface risks of electricity supply shortfalls during periods of more extreme summer conditions.\u201d The areas at elevated risk are shown in orange on the map below.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The grid is becoming increasingly fragile because of our growing dependence on energy sources that usually don\u2019t show up to work. So far, we still have enough reliable energy to keep the lights on almost all of the time. But as coal, nuclear and even natural gas plants are retired, that will no longer be true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

NERC officials did not mince words when describing the reliability risks the nation faces this summer. \u201cWe are facing an absolute step-change,\u201d NERC\u2019s Director of Reliability Assessment and Performance Analysis John Moura said in a call with reporters. Over the past five years, NERC has seen a \u201csteady deterioration in the risk profile of the grid.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe system is close to its edge \u2026 managing the pace of retirements is critical,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A common thread of the Utility Dive piece was how the performance of unreliable wind and solar resources would impact grid reliability.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In other words, if the wind doesn\u2019t blow, we are screwed. As it happens, the times of hottest and coldest temperatures are also generally times when there isn\u2019t much wind. Isaac points out that the Summer, when demand for air conditioning peaks, tends to be calm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) show wind generation can virtually reach zero during hot summer days. To depend on wind to meet surging electricity demand is to gamble with grid reliability. Maybe it will work, maybe it won\u2019t.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You read that correctly: in the heart of the Summer, over the entire Midcontinent Independent System Operator territory, wind turbines generally produce less than 30% of their rated capacity. Sometimes they produce virtually nothing over the entire region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is obviously a recipe for grid failure. You might assume that the liberals who are now in charge of energy policy have a plan to prevent grid collapse. You would be wrong. They don\u2019t. It isn\u2019t a question of whether we experience massive blackouts, it is a question of when. Every year, as reliable power is replaced with sporadic power, blackouts become more likely until they are inevitable. If not this year, it will be next year. If not then, the year after. Isaac concludes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

The biggest tragedy in this situation is that the blackouts are entirely foreseeable and preventable, but the Biden administration and liberal state lawmakers are intent on pushing policies that make them inevitable. Elections have consequences.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And those consequences are turning out to be tragic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You can\u2019t replace reliable energy (coal, nuclear, natural gas) with unreliable energy that most of the time produces nothing (wind and solar). If you do, the electric grid will fail and there will be blackouts. That is the situation we are in today.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":263230,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818336,691818279,691819662,691818728],"class_list":{"0":"post-263224","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-biden-administration","9":"tag-blackouts","10":"tag-nerc","11":"tag-wind-and-solar","13":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-16ty","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":386992,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=386992","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":0},"title":"Blackouts underscore global power crisis","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/07\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Environmentalists, along with some politicians and their allies, argue that fossil fuel and nuclear power are being irreversibly replaced by wind and solar power. They refuse to acknowledge that mining, cropland and habitat destruction, toxic wastes, and other adverse effects make these electricity sources anything but clean, renewable, or sustainable\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Blackouts\"","block_context":{"text":"Blackouts","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=blackouts"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Blackout.webp?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Blackout.webp?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Blackout.webp?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Blackout.webp?fit=1024%2C576&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":335482,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=335482","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":1},"title":"Europe\u2019s Green Energy Plans Stall As Leading Companies Reduce Expansion Plans","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/07\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Green energies in turmoil\u2026projects being postponed, scaled back\u2026 Europe\u2019s largest green energy producer drastically reduces expansion plans for wind and solar energy","rel":"","context":"In \"Europe\"","block_context":{"text":"Europe","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=europe"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Fichier-17-06-07-07-49-03.jpeg?fit=1200%2C798&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Fichier-17-06-07-07-49-03.jpeg?fit=1200%2C798&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Fichier-17-06-07-07-49-03.jpeg?fit=1200%2C798&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Fichier-17-06-07-07-49-03.jpeg?fit=1200%2C798&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Fichier-17-06-07-07-49-03.jpeg?fit=1200%2C798&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":377090,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=377090","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":2},"title":"Have The Intermittent Energy Blackouts Begun?","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/05\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Today there have been widespread electricity blackouts across Europe, beginning in Spain and Portugal in the early afternoon (local time), and then spreading to other countries including France, Andorra, Belgium and the Netherlands. Is this related to the increasing penetration of intermittent generation from wind and solar facilities?","rel":"","context":"In \"Andorra\"","block_context":{"text":"Andorra","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=andorra"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0droht-uns-ein-extremer-blackout-im-winter_857755995_1200x675_a08afa16a7ff2a5c5294c2d3ff1d6620.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0droht-uns-ein-extremer-blackout-im-winter_857755995_1200x675_a08afa16a7ff2a5c5294c2d3ff1d6620.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0droht-uns-ein-extremer-blackout-im-winter_857755995_1200x675_a08afa16a7ff2a5c5294c2d3ff1d6620.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0droht-uns-ein-extremer-blackout-im-winter_857755995_1200x675_a08afa16a7ff2a5c5294c2d3ff1d6620.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0droht-uns-ein-extremer-blackout-im-winter_857755995_1200x675_a08afa16a7ff2a5c5294c2d3ff1d6620.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":390542,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=390542","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":3},"title":"VCEA could cause Dominion\u2019s average customer to pay over $40,000 for batteries","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"24\/07\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) mandates that Dominion Energy, the state\u2019s big electric utility, rapidly shift its power generation to wind and solar. Dominion\u2019s latest Integrated Resources Plan (IRP) provides dramatic evidence that this shift does not work, making blackouts inevitable. Making it work would be fantastically expensive, with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Blackout\"","block_context":{"text":"Blackout","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=blackout"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQOxcc6a8NqKMSEN2bjUQBBYWjnWz4WrxeF9KmIG43TllGihlaNSbrZDO80O1f_lZlKa1w9qUCAM8Wwa3m2SYO0oU2yb4-wvxCchq9Hejmj90O8AXlnE_zyNcPWNSAN2ZdC3dSJft92sv3Ti-sbgBXw8y1ebGg-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQOxcc6a8NqKMSEN2bjUQBBYWjnWz4WrxeF9KmIG43TllGihlaNSbrZDO80O1f_lZlKa1w9qUCAM8Wwa3m2SYO0oU2yb4-wvxCchq9Hejmj90O8AXlnE_zyNcPWNSAN2ZdC3dSJft92sv3Ti-sbgBXw8y1ebGg-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQOxcc6a8NqKMSEN2bjUQBBYWjnWz4WrxeF9KmIG43TllGihlaNSbrZDO80O1f_lZlKa1w9qUCAM8Wwa3m2SYO0oU2yb4-wvxCchq9Hejmj90O8AXlnE_zyNcPWNSAN2ZdC3dSJft92sv3Ti-sbgBXw8y1ebGg-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQOxcc6a8NqKMSEN2bjUQBBYWjnWz4WrxeF9KmIG43TllGihlaNSbrZDO80O1f_lZlKa1w9qUCAM8Wwa3m2SYO0oU2yb4-wvxCchq9Hejmj90O8AXlnE_zyNcPWNSAN2ZdC3dSJft92sv3Ti-sbgBXw8y1ebGg-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/0AQOxcc6a8NqKMSEN2bjUQBBYWjnWz4WrxeF9KmIG43TllGihlaNSbrZDO80O1f_lZlKa1w9qUCAM8Wwa3m2SYO0oU2yb4-wvxCchq9Hejmj90O8AXlnE_zyNcPWNSAN2ZdC3dSJft92sv3Ti-sbgBXw8y1ebGg-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":349369,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=349369","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":4},"title":"$650m in renewable energy didn\u2019t save Broken Hill from days of blackouts after a storm islanded it","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"29\/10\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The lights went out in Broken Hill. A storm blew seven transmission towers over disconnecting the area from the national grid on October 17th. About 19,000 people live there, and with a 200MW wind plant, a 53MW solar array and a big battery, plus diesel generators it was assumed they\u2019d\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"200MW wind plant\"","block_context":{"text":"200MW wind plant","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=200mw-wind-plant"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0dc3b88bdf8bef2711168a3cff339e12b.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0dc3b88bdf8bef2711168a3cff339e12b.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0dc3b88bdf8bef2711168a3cff339e12b.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0dc3b88bdf8bef2711168a3cff339e12b.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0dc3b88bdf8bef2711168a3cff339e12b.webp?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":389499,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=389499","url_meta":{"origin":263224,"position":5},"title":"Kathryn Porter On The Spanish\u00a0Blackouts","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"18\/07\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Kathryn Porter has a detailed analysis of the concise but informative\u00a0report\u00a0produced by Red El\u00e9ctrica de Espa\u00f1a (\u201cREE\u201d), the Spanish Transmission System Operator on the Spanish blackouts.","rel":"","context":"In \"Iberian grid\"","block_context":{"text":"Iberian grid","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=iberian-grid"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ChatGPT-Image-30.-Apr.-2025-15_49_25.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ChatGPT-Image-30.-Apr.-2025-15_49_25.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ChatGPT-Image-30.-Apr.-2025-15_49_25.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ChatGPT-Image-30.-Apr.-2025-15_49_25.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ChatGPT-Image-30.-Apr.-2025-15_49_25.png?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=263224"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":263235,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263224\/revisions\/263235"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/263230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=263224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=263224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=263224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}