KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Last year, much of East Tennessee saw rolling blackouts following a cold snap during the holiday season. A nonprofit regulatory authority said the region could be at an elevated risk for blackouts this winter too.
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation works to make sure power grids are able to provide electricity in any condition and also works to make sure North American utilities reduce risks to the reliability and security of electrical systems. It released the 2023-2024 Winter Reliability Report on Nov. 8.
The organization said the SERC-Central region, which includes East Tennessee, is starting to see higher peak-time demands during winter. Historically, the report said the region sees the most demand during the summertime.
While the report said the region has resources to meet demands in the scenarios NERC tested for, a severe drop in temperatures in the South could lead to "energy emergencies" as utilities like the Tennessee Valley Authority face forced outages of power generators and spikes in demand.
"Above-normal winter peak load and outage conditions could result in the need to employ operating mitigations," the report said.
The TVA said it is working to avoid having to resort to mitigations, such as the ones it used during last year's holiday period. During the holiday season, much of East Tennessee saw rolling blackouts during a severe cold snap, as TVA worked to make sure power could continue to be provided and systems weren't severely impacted by a spike in demand.
The TVA said it has enclosed equipment to protect it from the cold, and crews are regularly checking on equipment to make sure it works properly. The utility also has new equipment on hand to replace failing equipment.
"The intention is for the entire fleet to be able to operate in extreme weather conditions of up to -20 degrees Fahrenheit, and 20 mph winds for at least 48 hours," said Scott Brooks, a spokesperson for TVA.
The utility also added new contracts to make sure power is available throughout the season, as well as new natural gas power generation.
According to NERC's report, natural gas makes up the majority of power generated during peak times, followed by coal and then by nuclear power. It said during extreme demand periods, the region may need 46.9 GW of power and is anticipated to have around 52.7 GW of resources. However, it could lose resources during forced outages or during severe "Elliott-level outages."