Five years ago, more than 50 million people in the Northeast and Midwest were affected by the largest blackout in North American history. This blackout is estimated to have cost between $4 and $10 billion in economic losses. Despite increased attention and some additional investment, the situation that caused the blackout unfortunately has not been resolved, and the probability of a second devastating blackout is very likely.

My company, ITC Holdings Corp., owns, operates and manages the electric transmission systems – the grid – in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula and portions of Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois and Missouri. As the first fully independent transmission company in the country, we are 100 percent focused on investing in the transmission grid to improve electric reliability, improve access to markets and lower the overall cost of delivered energy. Considering that a 30-year trend of underinvestment in the grid combined with a collision of overgrown vegetation and power lines caused the first blackout, ITC has made great strides to mitigate the risk of another major outage. Since we began operations in 2003, ITC has invested more than $800 million in grid infrastructure improvements that have resulted in significantly reduced system outages and increased efficiency.

But without a national energy policy to support us, ITC’s accomplishments alone are not enough.

What other changes have been made since the blackout five years ago? After calls for mandatory standards from industry leaders, Congress acted by passing the Energy Policy Act of 2005, setting federal reliability standards for the transmission grid. These standards will help. Adopted in July of 2007, they put an enforcement mechanism in place for all electric utilities. Additionally, the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) went from a voluntary organization to an independent enforcement agency for the industry.

Over these past years, there have been other changes in the energy industry. With the price of oil at an all-time high, a gallon of gas hovering around $4 and our utter reliance on foreign oil, the call for change has gone out. There are many ideas on how to wean our country off imported oil and on to more sustainable and renewable forms of energy. Bio-fuels, solar, wind power, nuclear, hydrogen, wave power, improved efficiency and conservation are just some of the possibilities.

There is one common theme among all ideas out there: Electricity will play a key role in our nation’s ability to reach energy independence. Andy Grove, Intel Corporation’s former chairman and chief executive, recently called for a shift away from petroleum and toward electricity. This shift, and the development of renewable energy that is nearly all electric based, only adds to the need for a reliable, robust and efficient electric transmission system.

The United States needs a policy that supports the amount of energy options available and increases transmission access to accommodate the growing energy demand, which is expected to increase 30 percent by 2030.

There’s no denying it: We are knee-deep in a national energy crisis that requires a national solution.

Policymakers must take a fresh look at how generation resources should be allocated and how the grid can be used on a regional or national scale to facilitate reliable energy delivery and efficient energy markets. Imagine a transmission infrastructure similar to an interstate highway system as opposed to the current state-by-state approach. With that, we could more diligently and efficiently utilize the system to move wind from abundant regions to where it is demanded, or transport coal by wire as a more environmentally-friendly method.

Policymakers have taken steps to consider new sources for energies and technologies, but none of this is possible without a robust transmission grid. The grid will be threatened unless we build the necessary transmission infrastructure to support the amount of renewable energy options that are available to us.

The chance to make a change is upon us. As we reflect on the five year anniversary of the blackout, there’s no better time than now to push forward on solidifying a national energy strategy – before the lights go out on this opportunity.

Copyright © 2002-2006, CyberTech, Inc. - All rights reserved.