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Californians Asked to Turn On Holiday Lights Late as Power Demand Peaks by Colleen Valles, Associated Press Seattle Post-Intelligencer, December 5, 2000

SAN FRANCISCO -- Energy shortages have strained electrical and natural gas supplies, prompting the state to ask residents to keep their holiday lights off in the early evening and leading utilities to warn customers about skyrocketing heating bills.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. customers face an average bill of $77 this December. Last December the average bill was $50.

PG&E is warning customers to expect high bills throughout the winter.

Utility officials urged homeowners to delay turning on holiday lights until after demand tapered off in the evening, after 7 or 8 p.m. They also asked homeowners to lower their thermostats to 68 degrees while at home and to 55 degrees if they leave the house, and to use appliances in off-peak hours, before 4 p.m. or after 7 p.m.

Part of the problem is a decreasing supply of natural gas nationwide, said Claudia Chandler, assistant executive director of the California Energy Commission. Low natural gas prices over the past few years led to a decline in drilling and production. That is now picking up, but the products of those efforts will not hit the market for up to two years.

California also must now compete with the East Coast for natural gas, because urban areas in the East have built their own pipelines to reserves of natural gas that California has been using.

The high price of electricity and oil also are driving the cost up, because much of the natural gas supply goes to generate electricity. And, because oil prices are also high, consumers that can use either petroleum and natural gas have no incentive to switch to petroleum.

Although PG&E said most of its supply of natural gas is guaranteed by contracts, prices will continue to be high.

Electricity shortages also are plaguing the state, with a Stage One power emergency declared Tuesday morning -- following a Stage Two power emergency on Monday.

"This is going to be another challenging week for the ISO," said Patrick Dorinson, spokesman for the California Independent System Operator, the state agency that runs the electricity system for about 75 percent of the state.

A Stage Two emergency means the state is within 5 percent of running out of power. During Stage Two emergencies, the agency can cut power to commercial customers who have agreed to interruptible contracts. The next step, when reserves fall below 1.5 percent, is a Stage Three, which triggers rotating blackouts. A Stage One is when electricity reserves dip below 7 percent, and is a request for voluntary conservation.

California never has had a statewide Stage Three emergency (until 2 days later, see stage3.htm). But Monday's peak demand of more than 34,000 megawatts was close to the wintertime record, and supplies could get even tighter with colder weather looming later in the week.

Part of the problem is that some power plants are out of commission while owners perform maintenance that was delayed because of summer power needs.

Estimates vary, meanwhile, as to how much holiday lights contribute to the problem. The power agency says the lights add about 1,000 megawatts of consumption statewide. But Edison figures the total for its 50,000-square-mile territory alone to be about 1,400 megawatts. A thousand megawatts is enough to supply about 1 million homes.

Not all electricity consumers are affected by the shortages. Los Angeles Department of Water and Power customers, for instance, can switch on holiday lights without fear because the municipal utility, like others in the region that are not part of the ISO grid, has more than enough electricity to meet demand.

Related Links:
California Independent System Operator: www.caiso.com