California summer hydroelectric supply will be replaced by other sources
May 12, 2015 | By
Jaclyn Brandt
Utilities across the country are looking at their summer electricity supplies, and the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) is dealing with an especially trying summer because of California's drought. But according to CAISO's report, "2015 Summer Loads and Resources Assessment," electricity supplies will be constant during the summer of 2015, even in the hottest of temperatures.
The report found there will be additional grid reliability this year because of additional generation that has been interconnected to the system, most of it in the form of solar, as well as stable imports and a "moderate" peak demand growth. "It is always a challenge to operate the grid under the high loads produced by sweltering summer temperatures, but our analysis shows we have the resources available to meet California's need this year," said CAISO CEO and President Steve Berberich in a statement. "We will keep a close watch on the system, particularly in Southern California where fires, high demand and transmission congestion can cause concerns." The additional generation resources will also help mitigate the effects of the lowered hydroelectric availability -- which California ISO said are at their lowest levels in a decade. CAISO's assessment found that even in the most extreme heat scenario -- which is seen in California around every 10 years -- there would be 2,733 megawatts (MW) less hydroelectricity. In a normal projection, there would be 1,511 MW less hydroelectricity. Even in the extreme condition, there would still be reserve margins at around 11 percent. Total generation capacity available from all sources of electricity is expected to be at 54,322 MW -- with summer peak load at 54,322 MW. That includes 9,500 MW of imported energy from outside of California. "With lower hydro output in California there may be a need for increased imports during peak load conditions; however if certain transmission facilities are out of service, the California -- Oregon Intertie (COI) thermal limit could be a limiting condition on imports from the Pacific Northwest during these outage conditions," the report said. "Nevertheless, it is anticipated that dynamically scheduled and other generation from the Four Corners will be available for surplus energy sales into the CAISO during the peak hours." The ISO said they also identified around 1,840 MW of demand response programs that they will be able to use as a backup during the summer. "Since summer of 2014, 2,328 megawatts of new generation has been added to the grid with solar resources accounting for 96 percent of the interconnections," CAISO said in a statement. "Currently, about 6,700 megawatts of solar resources are connected to the grid with about 6,100 megawatts of wind. In total, 16,300 megawatts of renewable resources are interconnected and producing clean energy for consumers use and represent about 25 percent of the total resource mix." For more: © 2015 FierceMarkets, a division of Questex Media Group LLC. All rights reserved. |