California hit 95% renewable energy. Yes, you read it right. The 100% clean power goal doesn’t seem to be so far. What does this imply? In the nearest future, there will be no more pressure on the grid, no more grid failures, hence no more Rolling Blackouts. The customers will be fully equipped with all the resources in case any power outages occur. Upon hearing this great news, let’s get into more details explaining this thrilling event.
On Saturday California Heat 95% Renewable Energy
On Saturday 24 of April, before 2:30 pm, the state hit the record by only four seconds. Even though it lasted just seconds, it talked much about how achievable it is to reach 100% clean energy. Looking at the graph below, take into account that the green line is renewables, orange line natural gas, red line imports, and blue one large hydro. You can clearly see that renewable energy production exceeded natural gas production for around 12 hours. This is an exceptional result that motivates to turn into cheaper, unlimited, and far cleaner energy of renewables.
Solar And Wind Power Produced The Most Power
The abundant sunshine and cool weather in the state made it easier for renewables to do the job. The main powerhouses of this event are solar production and wind farms. Hydropower biomass and geothermal renewables made smaller contributions. The state can even allow itself to sell renewable power to other states, helping them get rid of harmful fossil fuels. This program is known by the name of Western EIM, which makes the states in the US West share extra power with a goal of saving money for consumers and reducing climate change footprint. More and more companies join to facilitate the program, including the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, NorthWestern Energy in Montana, and El Paso Electric in Texas. Until 2023 it is anticipated to cover the Western states’ energy needs by about 83%.
What About Rolling Blackouts?
Last summer California experienced severe power outages that affected millions of consumers. The situation was critical, given that due to the COVID situation the majority of the workforce was working at home. Since this year the situation is similar in terms of more employees working from home, these unexpected shutdowns are a real threat to the economy. Thus, California needs to ensure that this success of renewables is replicable during hot summers. Recently giant batteries were employed as a backup to the grid to avoid system failures similar to the last Rolling Blackouts. This summer will be a real test for renewables to show the critics that the previous power outages weren’t the result of inflexible renewable energy production but rather improper planning and grid system errors. Now, as we know 95% renewable production is possible, there is so much to be done to streamline the process to get the most out of it.
The author of a publication: Elen Gevorgyan
