California faced one of the most prolonged heatwaves in its history.  All-time record temperatures up and down the state made it difficult for Californians to stay cool and the power to stay on.  The result of the oppressive heat led to Governor Gavin Newsom calling for an emergency proclamation to address the ten-day power crisis.  The proclamation loosened some environmental rules to ensure that the power stayed on and offered more benefits for those entities who chose to reduce energy usage.

During the ten days, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), the entity in charge of the state’s electrical grid, called for ten consecutive days of Flex Alerts and Energy Emergency Alert Watch (EEA Watch).  The Governor’s emergency proclamation, which ended on September 9, also allowed diesel and other backup generation to operate to reduce demand and increase energy supply. 

During the ten-day period, the Governor’s Administration and CAISO held daily phone calls with key stakeholders, including the investor-owned utilities, publicly-owned utilities, consumer choice aggregators, and large power users.  The daily calls ensured that all entities were on the same page and could react more nimbly if needed. 

California’s New Power Usage Record

During this time, peak demand reached highs for the year.  In fact, September 6 set a new all-time peak that had stood since 2006.  The ten-day peaks are as follows:

Day                                  Load

August 31                       45,117

September 1                    46, 959

September 2                    45,523

September 3                    44.023

September 4                    44,130

September 5                    48,929

September 6                  52,061

September 7                    50,071

September 8                    48,385

September 9                    42,061

The state turned to natural gas plants to keep the lights on.  During the ten days, nearly half the power came from natural gas (48,7%).  Imports made up 18.3%, renewables 20.8%, large hydro 6% and nuclear 6%.  During peak periods, the state relied more on natural gas and imports. 

During the 10-day period, five EEA 1 Emergencies, five EEA 2 Emergencies and one EEA 3 Emergency were issued.  The EEA 1 Emergency is called because reserve shortfalls exist, and there is a need for conservation.  In EEA 2 Emergencies, the state can no longer provide for its expected energy requirements, and market intervention is needed, such as ordering power plants online.  Also, during the EEA 2 Emergencies, the state ordered the California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) peaker facilities in Roseville and Yuba City. 

An EEA 3 Emergency is issued when that state cannot meet minimum contingency reserve requirements and load interruption is imminent or in progress.  Notice is issued to utilities of potential electricity interruptions through firm load shedding.  At this time, utilities are told to “arm” or prepare for rolling outages. 

Despite the daily calls, greater coordination, the increase in imports and thermal power, the use of CDWR peaker plants, and the demand response efforts, California barely made it through the crisis.  On September 6, the peak demand day, an EEA 3 Emergency was issued, and the state came within minutes of rotating outages.  California lost more than 2,000 MW of thermal power due to plant problems.  The vast majority of the troubled thermal units came back online for the peak period.  Some smaller utilities also misunderstood the policies and started to rotate outages when the EEA 3 emergency was called.  Even with these actions, the state needed to shed more load.  So the Governor ordered the use of the Amber Alert system, used to notify Californians of missing children, to alert Californians of the problem.  The message was sent to phones throughout the state, and the public responded with a load shed. 

The Administration knew the Amber Alert was something they could use only once and did not need to use it again.  For the remainder of the week, the state faced EEA 2 emergencies due to higher-than-normal demand, potential loss of transmission due to potential public safety power shutoffs in Southern California and Oregon, and reduced solar power due to smoke and cloud cover.  

As Governor Newsom said after the power outages in 2020, “We’ve always maintained that a golden oldie, you can’t control the weather, but you can prepare for the weather event. And let me just make this crystal clear: We failed to predict and plan these shortages, and that’s simply unacceptable… We cannot sacrifice reliability as we move forward in this transition.  And we’re going to be much more aggressive in focusing our efforts and our intention in making sure that is the case.”

As the state moves toward a cleaner and greener energy future, it will be interesting to see if California heeds the Governor’s words.

What About Power Prices, How High Did They Get?

Dr. Lucas Davis, at the UC Berkeley Energy Institute at the Haas School, has taken this on in his blog post:

“I want to look at what happened to wholesale electricity prices… Both Tuesday (9/6) and Wednesday (9/7) wholesale prices reached $1200 per MWh, some of the highest prices in recent memory.”

We recommend reading his full blog here:  https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2022/09/12/how-high-did-californias-electricity-prices-get/

A record-breaking heat storm is hitting California and for seven (7) consecutive days, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has called a “Flex Alert.”  The Alerts have been in effect daily since September 1, during the peak electricity consumption hours from 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  The hope is that Californians state-wide will reduce their energy use while the Flex Alert is in effect, so that power outages may be prevented.

Hot temperatures are expected through Friday (9/9/2022), so it is likely that CAISO may continue these Alerts through the end of the week.

According to CAISO, Californians from 57 counties have participated in the Flex Alerts and reduced their electricity consumption.

Tuesday’s peak demand set a new high at 51,424 megawatts (MW), well above the all-time record of 50,270 MW set in 2006.

CalFIRE and CAISO are also closely monitoring wildfires which may also add varying threats to transmission lines.

State fire officials have warned that more fires could break out in the coming days, increasing the risk of lost lines or generation.

The California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) also reported late Monday that 4 temporary emergency power generators were activated to provide electricity to the grid.  This is the first time they’re being used as part of an effort to help keep the lights on.

Governor Gavin Newsom has also issued an Executive Order to address some potential problems.  The order is in effect through the extreme weather event.  The Order also allows all backup generation to operate regardless of air emissions issues provided that CAISO issues an Energy Emergency Alert Watch (EEA Watch).  The watches are being called a day ahead around 2:30 PM after the day ahead market analysis.  CAISO has issued an EEA Watch every day since September 1.

On Tuesday afternoon (9/6), California narrowly avoided blackouts – thanks to 26,424 MWs of natural gas-fueled generation helping keep the lights on.  The heatwave is supposed to last another 3 days, so the danger is not over. 

A heat storm is hitting California and for five (6) consecutive days, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has called “Flex Alert.”  The Alert’s have been in effect daily since September 1, during the peak electricity consumption hours, from 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  The hope is that Californians state-wide will reduce their energy use while the Flex Alert is in effect, so that power outages may be prevented.

Hot temperatures are expected through Thursday (9/8/2022), so it is likely that CAISO may continue these Alerts through end of the week.

According to the CAISO, Californians from 57 counties have participated in the Flex Alerts and reduced their electricity consumption.

Tuesday’s peak demand is forecast to be 50,087 megawatts (MW), just shy of the all-time record of 50,270 MW set in 2006.

CalFIRE and CAISO are also closely monitoring wildfires which may also add varying threats to transmission lines.

State fire officials have warned that more fires could break out in the coming days, adding to the risk of lost lines or generation.

Governor Gavin Newsom has also issued an Executive Order to address some potential problems.  The order is in effect through the extreme weather event.  The Order also allows for all backup generation to be able to operate regardless of air emissions issues provided the CAISO issues an Energy Emergency Alert Watch (EEA Watch).  The watches are being called a day ahead around 2:30 pm after the day ahead market analysis.  The CAISO has issued an EEA Watch every day since September 1.

CDWR also reported late on Monday that 4 temporary emergency power generators were activated to provide electricity to the grid.  This is the first time they’re being used as part of an effort to help keep the lights on.

CAISO has warned that power outages are very likely on Tuesday (9/6) and Wednesday (9/7).

A heat storm is hitting California and for five (5) consecutive days, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has called “Flex Alert.” The Alert is in effect today (9/4/2022) from 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM. The hope is that Californians state-wide will reduce their energy use while the Flex Alert is in effect, so that power outages may be prevented.

Hot temperatures are expected through Monday (9/6/2022), so it is likely that CAISO may continue these Alerts through early next week.

According to the CAISO, Californians from 57 counties participated in the September 3 Flex Alert and reduced their electricity consumption.

The CAISO said on Saturday evening (9/3) that additional Flex Alerts will likely be called as heat will only intensify through Tuesday (9/6), with little relief from triple-digit temperatures seen over the next several days. Daytime high temperatures are forecast at 10-20 degrees above normal in much of the state
through the Labor Day weekend and into next week, and record-breaking heat is projected in some parts of California.

CAISO added that conditions are expected to be tight this evening (9/4), with a potential for supply shortfalls. Still, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in particular are shaping up to be the most difficult
of this heat wave.

Tuesday’s peak demand is forecast to be 50,087 megawatts (MW), just shy of the all-time record of 50,270 MW set in 2006.

CalFIRE and CAISO are closely monitoring three wildfires – Route Fire, Border 32 Fire, and the Mill Fire — with varying threats to transmission lines.

State fire officials have warned that more fires could break out in the coming days, adding to the risk of lost lines or generation.

Several generators have already been forced out of service, making supplies tighter.