From Staff Reports
Rolling blackouts, the temporary losses of electrical power for customers affected by the winter storms meant to lessen the strain on the overall system, have been possible this week, the nation’s energy officials have reported.
The Southwest Power Pool, the power grid operator for a region covering 14 states in the central United States, has declared an energy emergency, according to a news release from Oklahoma Gas & Electric.
Further interruptions of electric service are possible, but then late Tuesday, OG&E announced that more rolling blackouts were not expected.
An Energy Emergency Alert Level 2 has been declared. It had been at Level 3, a higher level, and could be elevated again as conditions change, OG&E reports. The power pool has directed its member utilities, including OG&E, to initiate temporary, controlled interruptions of service.
Rolling blackouts continued midweek, according to reports. The blackouts lasted about an hour.
More rolling blackouts were possible Wednesday, according to some reports.
“SPP has directed us to implement temporary interruptions of service,” said Brian Alford, OG&E spokesperson. “These will be short-term, controlled interruptions and may continue through mid-week,” the news release states.
Declaration of energy emergency alerts are due to several factors resulting from widespread, long-lasting and extreme cold weather. These factors include, but are not limited to, high electricity use across the entire SPP system and limited wind power and natural gas availability, according to the news release.
While Southwest Power Pool and its member companies work to restore the regional power grid to full capacity, OG&E is urging its customers to reduce electricity use.
Customers can help by taking simple conservation steps such as setting thermostats lower than usual, if health permits, postpone using major electric appliances such as stoves, dishwashers, and clothes dryers until mid-day or after 9 p.m. when the demand for electricity decreases, turn off electric lights and appliances that you do not need or are not using.
Also, businesses should minimize the use of electric lighting and electricity-consuming equipment as much as possible.
Large consumers of electricity should consider shutting down or reducing non-essential production processes.
“We join SPP, and all the utility companies in Oklahoma and the region in asking customers to help by reducing their electricity use as safely as possible,” Alford said.
