COLUMBUS, OH-The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) released its summer assessment of electric reliability and Ohio is at low-risk for demand exceeding supply.
That's a change from NERC's winter assessment of Ohio, which is within the 13-state PJM grid. The Midwest was at risk of losing power this past winter, but thankfully the weather stayed mild and outages were avoided.
Other areas of the country, however, are at risk of rolling outages or blackouts this summer on the hottest days. According to the NERC 2024 Summer Reliability Assessment, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, the upper midsection of the United States, and New England area are all at an elevated risk of rolling outages as temperatures rise in areas where baseload power generation has diminished due to EPA regulations.
Electricity consumers can help avoid rolling outages on the hottest days this summer by limiting energy consumption:
- Lower your thermostat by a few degrees or turn off the A/C
- Use washing machines and dishwashers in the evening
- Close blinds and curtains during the heat of the day
- Use a ceiling fan instead of A/C
- Unplug appliances when not in use
Here is a summary the NERC report contained for Ohio and states within the PJM region of the grid:
PJM is expecting a low risk of resources falling below required operating reserves. PJM forecasts a 29% IRM, well above the target of 17.7%. The RRS analyzed a wide range of load scenarios (low, regular, and extreme) as well as multiple scenarios for system-wide unavailable capacity due to forced outages, maintenance outages, and ambient derations. Due to the low penetration of variable energy resources in PJM relative to PJM’s peak load, the hour with most loss of load risk remains the hour with highest forecasted demand.
