California power grid declares another emergency. Blackouts still possible as heat persists
Saved from rolling blackouts the night before by a warning texted to millions, California’s power grid Wednesday braced for another tough evening as temperatures rose throughout the state.
The grid manager, the Independent System Operator, declared a stage 2 “energy emergency alert” effective 4 p.m. The alert signaled that supplies were once again extremely tight, and triggered a host of actions that could bring some relief to the grid, such as the use of backup generators that pollute heavily.
Although demand wasn’t expected to be quite as high as Tuesday, the grid manager asked PG&E Corp. and other utilities “to prepare for possible rotating power outages due to the potential for electricity supply on the larger Western region grid to fall short of the increased demand,” PG&E said. California’s largest utility told approximately 525,000 homes and businesses — about 10% of its customers — to prepare for blackouts.
The ISO also issued another Flex Alert — for the eighth straight day — asking Californians to turn up their thermostats and stop using heavy appliances during the afternoon and evening.
The possibility of blackouts Wednesday evening followed a harrowing few hours the day before. On Tuesday, the ISO went to a stage 3 alert and conditions were deteriorating rapidly, said Elliot Mainzer, chief executive of the ISO.
“We were well into the reserve tank of the car,” he said. “We were down to the last gallon.”
He said blackouts were probably prevented by a wireless alert sent at around 5:45 p.m. to millions of cellphones by the state Office of Emergency Services, warning of likely blackouts. Within about a half hour, he said demand for electricity fell by about 2,000 megawatts — enough power for more than 1.5 million homes.
“It took us back from the edge,” Mainzer said Wednesday.
SMUD, which is independent of the ISO, also just barely avoided blackouts Tuesday and credited consumer conservation with making the difference.
“At precisely 4 p.m., SMUD grid operators saw an immediate drop (in demand) of approximately 40 megawatts. Without that drop beginning at 4 p.m. and increasing for several hours going forward, SMUD would have experienced an all-time record peak and potentially rotating outages. All told, SMUD customers conserved over 140 megawatts over peak hours,” the Sacramento Municipal Utility District said.
SMUD asked customers to turn thermostats up to 80 degrees or higher Wednesday, starting at 4 p.m.
Mainzer said he hoped Californians would take the Flex Alerts to heart without needing another alert from Cal OES. “Now they get it; we’re not messing around,” he said.
The ISO said power demands were expected to peak Wednesday afternoon or evening at 50,806 megawatts — not as daunting as the record 52,061 megawatts consumed the day before, but still the second highest in state history.
Mainzer acknowledged that Californians were getting weary of Flex Alerts but he said the extremely high temperatures were nearing the finish line. “We need people to run through the tape and give it everything they’ve got,” he said.
This story was originally published September 7, 2022 at 3:25 PM.