NERC

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently said it expected coal-fired power generation in 2021 to be 22% higher than in 2020, producing the first year-over-year increase in U.S. electricity generation from coal since 2014. That higher generation, though, has reduced inventories of coal at the nation’s power plants, with EIA on Dec. 7 reporting […]

The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is warning that much of the central U.S.—a region that stretches from the Great Lakes into southern Texas—may face critical power deficiencies during extreme winter weather conditions over the next three months. Natural gas supply disruptions and low hydropower conditions could also imperil power reliability in New England […]

The rapidly spreading Bootleg Fire tripped off transmission lines that transport power from the Pacific Northwest to California and other states over the weekend, prompting the California Independent System Operator (ISO) to issue another Flex Alert—the sixth such conservation notification this summer. According to the state’s Incident Information System, the intense fire in Southern-Central Oregon […]

Utilities across the Pacific Northwest are bracing for exceptional stress on the grid as record-breaking temperatures continue to fester across the region, and at least one utility—Avista Corp.—this week began rolling outages as a measure to alleviate strain on the electric system. Despite pleas to customers to reduce their power consumption, Avista, which supplies power […]

The way we generate and distribute electricity has become a Rubik’s cube for power companies, regulators, and consumers. The need to reduce carbon emissions linked to climate change by investing in renewables is acknowledged by most experts. At the same time, recent unusual weather events have demonstrated that there is also an urgent need to […]

The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) is warning that large swathes of the North American bulk power system (BPS) could face “elevated risks” of energy shortfalls this summer, especially if temperatures surge beyond normal peaks. But in California, risks are even more pronounced, owing to its reliance on imports to offset falling solar PV […]

Owners and operators of the 100 most “critical” hazardous liquid and natural gas pipelines, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities will need to act within the next 30 days to align with federal cybersecurity guidance under new mandates issued by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The TSA’s May 27-issued pipeline-focused security directive is a notable, […]

A ransomware incident on May 7 that prompted Colonial Pipeline Co., owner of the nation’s largest refined products pipeline, to proactively shut it down underscores the punch cyberthreats can pose to organizations, “regardless of size or sector,” the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has warned.   Five days after Colonial Pipeline first learned it was the […]

The fallout from the severe weather that crippled the power grid in Texas and other states over the past week continues, as officials grapple with what went wrong and who should be held accountable for an energy emergency that left millions without electricity. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Feb. 19 said his office would […]

The changing profile of the power system has added new stressors on conventional power generation and may have raised the potential for forced outages. Addressing them requires a closer look at traditional and