{"id":329571,"date":"2024-05-21T19:29:28","date_gmt":"2024-05-21T17:29:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=329571"},"modified":"2024-05-21T19:29:30","modified_gmt":"2024-05-21T17:29:30","slug":"americas-power-grid-could-buckle-under-sweltering-summer-heat-watchdog-warns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=329571","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s Power Grid Could Buckle Under Sweltering Summer Heat, Watchdog Warns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
UNITED STATES – AUGUST 15: Manhattan skyline is dark as the sun comes up on the morning after a massive power failure caused the largest power outage in the nation’s history, affecting 50 million people in parts of seven states and Canada. (Photo by Mike Albans\/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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

From The Daily Caller<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

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

By NICK POPE<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Considerable portions of the U.S. are facing heightened risks of blackouts over the summer months, according to a new report by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of New England, Texas, the Midwest and the Southwest face \u201celevated risk\u201d of electricity shortages this summer if demand peaks at levels above normal,\u00a0according<\/a>\u00a0to NERC\u2019s 2024 summer reliability report. While the specific challenges that each region may face this summer differ, several large swaths of the country could have to respond to blackout conditions if solar and wind power fail to produce as much power as expected during periods of tight supply and more extreme summer weather.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNERC\u2019s latest reliability assessment shows that our electricity grid is becoming increasingly reliant on weather-dependent sources of electricity, leaving one-third of the country at elevated risk of blackouts this summer,\u201d Michelle Bloodworth, CEO of America\u2019s Power, a pro-coal advocacy group, said of the NERC report and its findings.\u00a0(RELATED: Biden\u2019s Climate Agenda May Jeopardize Grid Reliability, New Report Suggests)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Some of the nation\u2019s hottest, most populous states and regions, including Texas and California, are listed among the areas at \u201celevated\u201d risk, according to NERC. The report covers June through September of this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which covers much of the Midwest, faces higher risks if solar and wind fail to deliver in key scenarios, NERC\u2019s report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMISO is expected to have sufficient resources, including firm imports, for normal summer peak demand. However, it can be challenging for MISO to meet above-normal peak demand if wind and solar resource output is lower than expected,\u201d NERC\u2019s report reads. \u201cWind generator performance during periods of high demand is a key factor in determining whether there is sufficient electricity supply on the system or if external (non-firm) supply assistance is required to maintain reliability.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report issued a similar warning about the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) region, which covers nearly all of Texas. ERCOT narrowly\u00a0avoided<\/a>\u00a0blackouts in the summer of 2023, when a prolonged heat wave set in over the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs a result of continued vigorous growth in both loads and solar and wind resources, there is a risk of emergency conditions in the summer evening hours when solar generation begins to ramp down. Contributing to the elevated risk is a potential need, under certain grid conditions, to limit power transfers from South Texas into the San Antonio region,\u201d the report states. \u201cThese grid conditions can occur when demand is high and wind and solar output is low in specific areas, straining the transmission system and necessitating South Texas generation curtailments and potential firm load shedding to avoid cascading outages.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NERC has previously<\/a> warned that huge slices of the country face higher risks of blackouts in more extreme seasonal conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Biden administration has\u00a0spent<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0regulated<\/a>\u00a0aggressively to push the American power grid away from fossil fuels and toward intermittent generation from sources like solar and wind. Electricity demand is also projected to grow rapidly in the coming years, due in large part to Biden administration policies driving electric vehicle (EV) adoption, building electrification and new semiconductor manufacturing facilities,\u00a0according<\/a>\u00a0to Grid Strategies LLC, a power sector consultancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter\u2019s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact\u00a0<\/em>licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Considerable portions of the U.S. are facing heightened risks of blackouts over the summer months, according to a new report by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":329578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","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_feature_clip_id":0,"_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":[691818336,691818279,691818128],"class_list":["post-329571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-biden-administration","tag-blackouts","tag-energy","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/00o-NEW-YORK-BLACKOUT-2003-facebook.jpg?fit=1536%2C1028&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1nJF","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":277181,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=277181","url_meta":{"origin":329571,"position":0},"title":"Australia to see \u2018ongoing\u2019 blackouts if coal-fired power ‘isn\u2019t used\u2019","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/04\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Australian Chief Political Correspondent Geoff Chambers says it is \u201cpretty obvious\u201d from all the warnings if coal-fired power isn\u2019t used Australia will see blackouts both over the summer and ongoing.","rel":"","context":"In \"Australia\"","block_context":{"text":"Australia","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=australia"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0Screenshot-2023-09-04-140348.png?fit=980%2C565&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0Screenshot-2023-09-04-140348.png?fit=980%2C565&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0Screenshot-2023-09-04-140348.png?fit=980%2C565&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/0Screenshot-2023-09-04-140348.png?fit=980%2C565&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":263224,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=263224","url_meta":{"origin":329571,"position":1},"title":"Wind Dependency: Get Ready For\u00a0Blackouts","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"06\/21\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"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","rel":"","context":"In \"Biden Administration\"","block_context":{"text":"Biden Administration","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=biden-administration"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0blackout_main_torches.jpg?fit=1200%2C787&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":279467,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=279467","url_meta":{"origin":329571,"position":2},"title":"Want Time Freezing or Boiling In The Dark: Keep Backing Wind &\u00a0Solar","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/19\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Pinning your power needs to intermittent wind and solar power comes with a grab bag of consequences. Not least, blackouts whenever surging demand coincides with calm weather and\/or sunset. Whether it\u2019s wind and solar-obsessed South Australia or Germany, the results are inevitable.","rel":"","context":"In \"AEMO report\"","block_context":{"text":"AEMO report","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=aemo-report"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/00blackout-trailer-poster-resize-1200x0-70.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/00blackout-trailer-poster-resize-1200x0-70.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/00blackout-trailer-poster-resize-1200x0-70.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/00blackout-trailer-poster-resize-1200x0-70.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/00blackout-trailer-poster-resize-1200x0-70.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":425947,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=425947","url_meta":{"origin":329571,"position":3},"title":"Macron says Spain’s mega-blackout was due to the country’s reliance on renewable energy","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/13\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"French President Emmanuel Macron recently stated that Spain's major blackout in April 2025 was caused by the country's over-reliance on renewable energy. 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