Southwest Power Pool, which operates the power grid and wholesale electricity market for 14 central states, said Monday that it ordered its members to initiate controlled power outages.
The state of affairs: SPP will implement “controlled interruptions of service” to prevent uncontrolled power outages as states across the region face an aggressive winter storm.
- Company issued an Energy Emergency Alert Level 3, which means “the operating reserves are below the required minimum”.
- SPP specified that while it told its affiliated utilities to limit energy consumption, those members will handle whether the outage is planned or not.
- SPP operates the power grid in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming.
What they say: “After the available back-up power was exhausted, SPP has now mandated its connected utilities to implement controlled service interruptions to prevent further, more widespread and uncontrolled outages,” SPP said in a statement.
- “In our history as a grid operator, this is an unprecedented event and it is the first time that SPP has ever had to call for controlled service interruptions,” said Lanny Nickel, SPP executive vice president.
Worth nothing: More than 2 million people in Texas already have no electricity because of single-digit temperatures and a cold wind chill below zero.
Zoom out: At least 400,000 homes, businesses and other customers lost power in Mexico as cold temperatures in Texas caused a shortage of natural gas and brought power plants down.
- According to the grid operator, about 70% of those affected had restored their power supply by noon. Prices