Power outages possible as BPA systems stressed by record demand

BPA is asking Tri-Citians to conserve energy between 5-7 p.m. to avoid unplanned power outages.

The nonprofit federal power marketer posted the plea on its Facebook page at 4 p.m. Monday, June 28, noting that “our transmission system in the Tri-Cities area is experiencing record demand. We have room above the current system demand but suspect that energy use could be highest between 5-7 p.m.”

Richland Energy Services has warned its customers of rolling outages if total load approaches maximum capacity.

Benton PUD reported it hit a new system peak of 451 MW over the weekend, up from 437 MW last July.

The Bonneville Power Administration already has taken steps to position the federal power and transmission system to serve customers during this week’s record-breaking heat wave.

“We take our responsibility to provide reliable electricity to the consumer-owned utilities in the region very seriously,” said BPA Administrator John Hairston in a release. “We are working hard to provide non-stop, reliable electricity this weekend to help residents and businesses stay cool and safe during the heat wave.”

The National Weather Service in Pendleton warns that the region’s very hot and dangerous triple-digit temperatures will continue through July 6 before temperatures cool slightly into the upper 90s.

BPA pointed to several steps it has taken to help to offset the usage load:

The Columbia Generating Station, a nuclear plant owned by Energy Northwest north of Richland that produces power marketed by BPA, returned online this past weekend from a spring refueling outage. That adds more than 1,100 megawatts of generation in the Northwest and the West.

Programmed fish spill on the lower Columbia and Snake rivers transitioned from spring to summer operations, increasing the federal hydropower generation from those facilities.

The Bureau of Reclamation has the Grand Coulee reservoir well positioned to meet its refill target in early July, freeing up the remaining water flow to pass through the system for both power and non-power purposes.

BPA offers these suggestions for saving energy:

Wash clothes in cold water.

Set water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

Set ceiling fans to rotate in counter-clockwise to circulate cool air.

Change clogged or dirty air filters as they can cause HVAC systems to work hard and waste energy.

Plug your TV, cable box and video games into a smart power strip so idle electronics don’t suck energy, which can contribute up to 10% of a household’s monthly electric usage.