United States Warned to Brace for Blackouts, Harsh Winter

Just in time for the holidays…a new report from the North American Electric Reliability Council on the nation’s power supply over the coming winter months says there’s a lot to be worried about, including potential fuel shortages and blackouts in a quarter of the U.S.

According to Bloomberg News:

NERC’s warning touches at least a quarter of Americans, who are poised to see already high utility bills soar even more this winter. Electricity demand has rebounded faster than anyone anticipated after the Covid-19 pandemic shutdowns. Prices of gas, the No. 1 power-plant fuel in the US, are high because of below-average stockpiles and strong exports to Europe as Russia wages a war on Ukraine. A possible railroad strike also threatens to impact coal supplies. 

“As the demand for electricity risks outpacing the available supply during peak winter conditions, consumers face an inconceivable but real threat of rolling blackouts,” Jim Matheson, chief executive officer of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, said in an emailed statement. “It doesn’t have to be this way. But absent a shift in state and federal energy policy, this is a reality we will face for years to come.”

And that’s not an isolated assessment:

“There is a very real possibility that New England could be facing a dire set of consequences this winter,” James Danly, a commissioner on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, said during the agency’s meeting Thursday.

But for all of this icy, costly doom-and-gloom…things have gotten better since last year’s report:

The outlook for winter hydropower generation in the West has improved and the Southwest Power Pool has added new gas and wind generation.

But just in case, maybe add a nice, warm sweater (or three) to your Christmas wish list. And remember to get that shopping done before Dec. 8 just in case there’s a nationwide rail strike.