US will have big problems with electricity this winter
2022.11.17 15:08
US will have big problems with electricity this winter
Budrigannews.com – According to the organization responsible for the reliability of the US power grid, most of North America is at risk of insufficient power supply during the winter peak.
In a webcast of its 2022-2023 winter reliability assessment, North American Electric Reliability Corp (NERC) said these reliability concerns include peak demand forecasts, generator recalls, extreme weather and fuel supply and infrastructure issues.
In Texas, the electricity demand projected by nerc has increased by more than 7 percent since last winter, which led to a drop in reserve margins, and noted that generators and fuel supply were still threatened by extreme and prolonged cold like the Texas freeze in 2021, when the grid operators were not able to meet the demand for electricity.
NERC said the lack of interconnection with other regions limited Texas’ ability to import electricity from other regions if problems arose.
In the Mid-Continental Independent Operator (MISO) area of the U.S. Midwest, NERC said preliminary margins have fallen by more than 5 percent since last winter as retired generations have exceeded their capacity to trade.
“The energy emergency is likely to be in an extreme situation,” NERC said of MISO, noting that wind turbine performance will be a key factor this winter.
In New England, NERC warned that the amount of oil stored in generators is about 40 percent of their capacity.
“We encourage generators to fill these tanks,” NERC reliability evaluation manager Mark Olson said in a webcast.
The combination of low oil reserves and record global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) after the Russian invasion of Ukraine increases the risk of fuel availability in the New England region, NERC said.
Jim Matheson, executive director of the National Association of Rural Electricity Cooperatives, said that the closure of power plants in recent years and other measures that have eliminated energy supplies while trying to transition to low-carbon energy sources have had a negative impact on the reliability of the network.
“We have to be very careful as a country, and in certain regions, maybe more than in others,” said Matheson, whose organization represents about 900 private electric vehicles.
“But I think this concern exists everywhere about disconnecting capacity when it’s not being replaced in a reasonable or reliable way.”
