One (or Two) More Supply-Chain Scenarios To Worry About In The West and The Southwest

Outages and rolling blackouts in supply transmission lines and exchanges in electric power grids are the focus of potential risk-management strategies examined in a recent report published by Bloomberg when there's competition for increasingly scarce resources that hasn't been seen in quite some time. Interesting to note that the markets are already "pricing in the risks". . .

". . .While blackouts aren’t a guarantee in any region, traders are already betting on supply shortages and sending power prices soaring throughout the West. At the heavily traded Palo Verde hub in Arizona, prices have nearly quadrupled since last summer’s outages, while the Pacific Northwest’s Mid-Columbia hub has tripled.

“We are already seeing record-breaking prices across the West, some of which can be attributed to a fear factor being priced in,” said JP McMahon, a market associate for Wood Mackenzie. “Last year was a bit of a wake-up call.”

The reasons behind the shortfall are two-fold: Climate change is making it harder to forecast demand for electricity while the shift to clean energy is straining power supplies.

Where utilities and grid managers were once able to rely on predictable consumption patterns season to season — more air conditioner use in August, less in October — they’re now reckoning with record-hot summers and historic winter storms that cause great, unexpected surges in demand.

“It’s becoming challenging to take out the crystal ball to know with any level of certainty how hot it’s going to be,” White said.

Blackouts Threaten Entire U.S. West This Summer as Heat Awaits

Outages are possible from Washington to New Mexico, with drought and searing temperatures forcing states to compete for electricity

By

Naureen S Malik

,

David R Baker

, and

Mark Chediak

‎May‎ ‎13‎, ‎2021‎ ‎5‎:‎15 Updated on ‎May‎ ‎13‎, ‎2021‎ ‎12‎:‎59

"First they struck California, then Texas. Now blackouts are threatening the entire U.S. West as nearly a dozen states head into summer with too little electricity.

From New Mexico to Washington, power grids are being strained by forces years in the making — some of them fueled by climate change, others by the fight against it. If a heat wave strikes the whole region at once, the rolling outages that darkened Southern California and Silicon Valley last August will have been previews, not flukes.

. . .The Western Electricity Coordinating Council, which oversees electricity grids throughout the western U.S. and Canada, estimates that without imports, Nevada, Utah and Colorado could be short of power during hundreds of hours this year, or the equivalent of 34 days. Arizona and New Mexico could be short for enough hours to total 17 days, according to a report by the organization that looked at worst-case scenarios to help states develop plans to head off potential outages.
“It’s no longer necessarily a California problem or a Phoenix problem,” said Jordan White, vice president of strategic engagement for the group, known as WECC. “Everyone is chasing the same number of megawatts.”

No-Power Hours

A Western electricity shortfall this summer means states reliant on power imports may be at risk of blackouts for days or months

Source: Western Electricity Coordinating Council

While blackouts aren’t a guarantee in any region, traders are already betting on supply shortages and sending power prices soaring throughout the West. At the heavily traded Palo Verde hub in Arizona, prices have nearly quadrupled since last summer’s outages, while the Pacific Northwest’s Mid-Columbia hub has tripled.

More

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24 September 2018

MESA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: SRP Receives Line Siting Committee Approval for Proposed Southeast Power Link Project

Looks like plans for new power lines to expand and create more Boomburgs in the SE Valley Sprawl following 6.5miles along State Route 24 are moving along.
With the approval of the Line Siting Committee, the next step is for the Arizona Corporation Commission to consider the application at a regularly scheduled open meeting.

10 May 2021

"Raging Wire" ?? Overload Data Center Demands Encounter Low-Voltage Public Resistance

Here's one more instance of corporate-owned mainstream media dubious reporting intended to manipulate and to influence public opinion by Tom Scanlon, Managing Editor of the East Valley Tribune - it's all about the jargon used by city officials in "administrative reviews"

"Once the opt-in is approved, a project for the most part falls off the radar of public viewing of design plans and approval by boards. . ." 

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INSERT: POST FROM THIS BLOG 2019

28 June 2019

Code Name Project Red Shark RHEOD A Nimble Confidential Start to Google BIG DATA CENTER

The news broke here in Mesa yesterday, after a closed-door Executive Session of the Mesa City Council at a study session about 'a very big deal". However, back in March there was an un-notice hearing in front of the Planning & Zoning Board that tells the story and gives a narrative to rezone and qualify Red Hawk as a job-creation area - Red Hawk Employment Opportunity District

Very careful wording with this disclaimer more than three months ago:
Please read the official narrative and City Council staff report with the denial

"not known at this time"

The following is part of a post on this blog earlier this year

25 March 2019

Mesa Planning & Zoning Board Public Hearing Last Week Wed 20 March 2019
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Here we go Loop-de-Loop!
We're talkin' here about massive developments in-the-works  mostly in the "Outer Loops" that were up at a Public Hearing last week on Wednesday 20 March 2019 in front of the Mesa Planning & Zoning Board - nothing to get bored about in either the Outer or Outer Loops or the east-west tech corridors and industrial parks on the planning boards. Seriously - Take the time to find out.
Here are all the links you need > Digitize
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Two geographic hot spots: Scroll down to see new OZone Redhawk RHEOD
Northeast Mesa District 5 and Southeast Mesa District 6 There are Minutes available that will take you a long to take a look at - just enough extracted here for your interest