Half of US is at risk of losing power during extreme cold, say officials

By Will Wade and Naureen S. Malik

Power grids that supply more than half of the US population may run short of electricity during an extended cold snap or severe storm over the coming winter, according to industry regulators. 
 

Regional system operators in a vast swath of the country stretching from Texas to New England are “at risk of insufficient electricity supplies during peak winter conditions,” the North American Electric Reliability Corp. said Wednesday in its winter reliability assessment, which also showed Quebec and Saskatchewan facing the threat of power shortfalls. 

The outlook is even more dire than last year’s report, which said a quarter of Americans were at risk of cold-weather power emergencies. It includes for the first time some of the most densely populated areas on the East Coast, a region that relies heavily on natural gas as it transitions to renewable energy. Gas generators there widely failed during a brief but fierce winter storm last December because they broke down or couldn’t get fuel.

“What we can tell you firmly is that there is not enough natural gas pipeline and infrastructure to serve all the gas generation in certain areas, big areas,” John Moura, NERC’s director of reliability assessment, said in a media briefing. 

The grid’s vulnerabilities have been revealed during storms in recent years, notably a 2021 deep freeze in Texas that left more than 200 people dead. While utilities and power generators have made efforts to weather-proof equipment, the NERC report determined that many are still at risk. Gas and coal deliveries can both be hampered during extreme weather and plants can be forced offline, just as cold temperatures drive up power consumption. 

Read more: Texas Power Grid Boss Sees Tight Winter Supply as Demand Grows

“We’ve seen the bulk power system more vulnerable to winter conditions,” Moura said. “That’s not because of the peak demand we are seeing, but mostly because of generator outages.”

In Texas, the state grid operator has warned that there is an “unacceptable” risk of an emergency in a powerful winter storm.