Less Snowpack, More Outages? California Power Agency Issues Summer Warning
FOLSOM, Calif. (CBSLA/AP) -- The manager of California's power grid says below-average hydroelectricity production could mean reduced supplies for consumers during high-demand periods this summer.
The California Independent System Operator on Wednesday released its annual summer assessment, which found consumers might experience lower supplies during peak evening hours on hot days when solar power dissipates and people get home from work and turn on air conditioning.
Cal-ISO says 2018 hydroelectric production will be down 1,300 megawatts by late summer compared to the above-normal production during a wet 2017.
The state Department of Water Resources reports that snowpack water content was just 51 percent of average as of April 2.
According to the analysis, there is a 50 percent probability that Cal-ISO will need to declare a Stage 2 emergency for at least one hour a day this summer - a move which last occurred in 2007.
A Stage 2 emergency requires ISO intervention in the market, such as ordering power plants online, according to the agency's website.
The report says there's an extremely low probability officials will be forced to initiate rotating power outages.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)