KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Monday afternoon/evening update: The Kansas Corporation Commission said rolling outages for Kansas have been completed for the day. The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) requested member electric utilities conduct the outages as a means to reduce strain on the system. SPP’s region covers 17 states, including Kansas.
He said the series of rolling blackouts happened Monday afternoon and lasted for about an hour to an hour and a half. He said the outages were planned and coordinated through the SPP and all utilities across the state by geographic area.
“We’re hopeful that they will have a period with adequate supply - but there still is a possibility, as we move forward in the coming hours, into the evening hours where demand is high and tomorrow morning where demand will be very high, folks are going to be waking up to very low temperatures, having demand for energy. There is a chance that rolling blackouts at that time,” said French.
Evergy was apart of the process. The energy company said approximately 60,000 of its customers lost power for approximately 30 minutes.
“While all customers impacted have been restored, we may be asked to implement additional brief power interruptions in the coming the days. We encourage all customers to continue conserving energy,” Evergy said in a tweet.
French and said customers can make an impact by cutting back their energy usage for the next 48 to 72 hours.
“Given the weather which is extremely out of the ordinary we have seen unprecedented demand for electricity especially at this time of year, add to that the weather has impacted out generation resources, not just in Kansas but throughout the whole region issues with wind turbines as they cannot produce as much power as normal due to freezing fog, freezing coal stacks at coal plants - also have natural gas plants that are competing for gas utilities for supply,” said French.
He said the KCC started monitoring this situation after some natural gas wholesale pricing spikes through the market. They wanted to know how Kansas customers would be impacted.
“They don’t think this is going to be a supply issue, there should be enough gas for everyone, but those price spikes are very high, as much as 100, 150, 200 times the prices of normal wholesale gas and that’s a concern,” said French.
He said the same measures customers are taking to conserve electricity can also be applied to their gas utility and it can help keep your bill low in the months to come.
Southwest Power Pool (SPP), responsible for directing power to utility providers across 14 states reported going from their lowest to highest alert level in a matter of hours was unprecedented.
“The first time in the history of SPP that we have found ourselves in an EEA 2 or EEA 3,” said SPP Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Mike Ross.
SPP said it started preparing for this possibility last week. For Kansas Electric Cooperatives, they say to help avoid more outages, they need customers’ help.
“Reduce their electricity usage where they can, where they safely can make those reductions, so it really lowers and lessons the impact on the entire system,” said Kansas Electric Cooperatives CEO Lee Tafanelli.
The cooperative says people should take steps now to prepare if more power interruptions are needed.
“Make sure you have a go-kit ready. Make sure you have extra blankets on hand, you medicine (that) you cell phone is charged, (that) you’ve got a full tank of gasoline in your vehicle,” Tafanelli said.
Due to extended extreme temperatures affecting the regional power supply, the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) has asked member electric utilities, including Evergy, to implement controlled, temporary emergency electricity reductions in order to help avoid larger uncontrolled and extended power outages throughout the region.
Beginning on February 15 at 12:15 p.m., Evergy will begin to turn off electricity to blocks of customers for approximately 30 – 60 minutes. Once the period has concluded, power will be restored to the impacted area. The emergency outages will then rotate to another portion of Evergy’s service area. Power will cycle off and on periodically until the reduction is no longer required by the SPP. With these extreme cold temperatures, equipment may not operate as intended. As a result, outages could last longer than 30 - 60 minutes.
If you are impacted by an emergency electricity reduction, you do not need to report your outage. Rather, check Evergy’s outage map and www.evergy.com/outageinfo for more information. All customers should be prepared for the potential for these periodic outages. If you experience an outage that lasts longer than an hour, report your outage at www.evergy.com or call 888-544-4852 or 800-544-4857, for Kansas Central customers.
Evergy asks customers to continue to conserve energy to help reduce stress on the power grid, potentially reducing the ongoing need for emergency reductions.
- Turn thermostats a little cooler (65-68 degrees). Avoid the use of electric space heaters.
- Close blinds and shades to reduce the amount of heat lost through windows.
- Turn off unnecessary lights and appliances
- When possible, delay non-essential uses of energy washing drying clothes, washing dishes and bathing to non-peak hours, between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
- Use low-temperature cooking methods and avoid opening the oven door if it’s on.
Evergy is also working with its large commercial and industrial customers to reduce energy usage this week. The company has reduced electricity use at Evergy facilities, implemented cold-weather procedures, and adapted operations at its power plants to keep equipment working and fuel available to generate electricity for customers.
Evergy is a member of the Southwest Power Pool, which coordinates the regional transmission grid and wholesale energy markets for a 14-state region across the central United States, including Kansas and Missouri. The SPP monitors power flow through its footprint and coordinates regional response in emergency situations.
In addition to the SPP call for reductions, its peers in Texas and the upper Midwest are also facing electricity shortages and are asking customers to conserve.
Copyright 2021 KWCH. All rights reserved.
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