News In Brief World News
News In Brief World News

California is Struggling with Energy Shortage this Summer

Share Us

493
California is Struggling with Energy Shortage this Summer
09 May 2022
4 min read

News Synopsis

Amid severe heatwaves, wildfires, and other weather events, the office of Governor Gavin Newsom and three other state agencies warned that the State of California could experience a power outage this summer. According to reports by Reuters, during an online meeting, officials said that California is struggling with a significant energy shortage that could eventually result in widespread losses of power.

The Officials further informed that the grid is facing a shortage of anything from 1,700 megawatts to 5,000 megawatts this year. This scarcity of power will impact between 1 million and 4 million people in California. However,  this would only happen, post an extreme event and was dependent on the success of conservation measures.

Officials from the California Energy Commission, Public Utilities Commission, California Independent System Operator, and Newsom said the state would have a shortage of 1,800 MW by the year 2025. California is highly susceptible to extreme weather events, specifically wildfires, with Predictive Services estimating an above-normal significant fire potential in northern California this summer. According to the climate project State at Risk, California is predicted to witness 150 days a year of high wildfire potential.