NERC Expects Tighter Electricity Supplies This Summer

Today the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) released its 2006 Summer Assessment. The report provides an assessment of the reliability and adequacy of the bulk electric system in North America for the period of June 2006 through September 2006.
“Electricity supplies will be tighter than last summer across much of North America, especially in Southern California and southwestern Connecticut,” says Rick Sergel, NERC president and CEO. “Although generating capacity resources will increase over last summer, peak demands are also increasing, and we are seeing a decline in capacity margins in most regions. While generating resources and transmission capability will be adequate to serve the electricity demand for this summer under normal weather conditions, extreme weather continues to present a significant reliability risk in those areas with lower margins,” Sergel warns.
The report cites Southern California as having lower capacity margins than most other areas, which could lead to supply shortages in a worst-case scenario. In the Northeast, transmission constraints continue to hinder delivery of electricity into and within southwestern Connecticut, which has the potential to cause reliability problems. The report also cites continuing concerns with reduced coal deliveries from the Powder River Basin as a result of last year