reliability

Winter is coming and the U.S. grid remains vulnerable to power plant failures

BY: - July 23, 2023

This story has been updated to correct the spelling of U.S. Sen. John Barrasso’s name. From winter storms to sweltering summer heat, there’s a consensus among experts that increasing extreme weather, a shifting electric generation mix, delays in getting new power generation projects connected and the difficulties in getting new transmission lines and other infrastructure […]

An electric power substation.

After shootings, regulator doesn’t recommend additional substation security standards 

BY: - April 20, 2023

The organization in charge of setting and enforcing reliability standards for the U.S. electric grid isn’t recommending new physical security requirements for thousands of electric substations following a rash of shooting attacks that have knocked out power in parts of several states. Jim Robb, CEO of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, told the Federal […]

The nation’s biggest electric capacity market needs fixing, critics say

BY: - March 20, 2023

The nation’s largest grid operator is warning it might not have enough electric generation in the future to guarantee reliability.  And it comes as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission convenes a forum on the multibillion-dollar capacity market PJM operates to ensure there’s enough power to meet demand even during grid emergencies, such as during Winter […]

Utility workers during winter storm Uri in 2021.

After a series of winter storms, regulators approve new standards for power plants

BY: - February 22, 2023

Two years after Winter Storm Uri, which caused a massive power failure in Texas that caused more than 200 deaths, and just two months after another storm, Elliott, forced blackouts in parts of the South, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved new extreme-cold reliability standards for power plants.  However, the vote last week on […]

LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA - AUGUST 27: Utility employees work on downed power lines after Hurricane Laura passed through the area on August 27, 2020 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Laura made landfall in low-lying Louisiana with a top wind speed of 150 mph, putting it among the most powerful storms ever to strike the U.S. The expected catastrophic storm surge however wound up being 9-12 feet, far from the worst forecast of 15-20 feet, though still destructive. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Affordable, reliable and sustainable: report compares utility performance 

BY: - January 23, 2023

A nationwide comparison of electric utility performance by an Illinois consumer advocacy group found that customers in states that are heavily reliant on fuel oil and natural gas, as in the Northeast and South, tend to pay more than those with larger amounts of carbon-free generation, among other findings.  The report by the Illinois-based Citizens […]