Marathon Pundit: Power grid operator PJM asking customers to use less electricity working with two fewer coal plants

The liberals' War on Coal, part of its fight against global warming, is wreaking havoc as much of the nation is under a deep freeze.

And the polar vortex may hit home--inside your home.

From the Chicago Tribune:

After electricity demand soared during Tuesday's continuing bitter cold, one of the country's largest electric grid operators asked consumers in Illinois and several other states to turn down the thermostats a touch during peak usage hours Wednesday.

PJM Interconnection, which coordinates wholesale electricity distribution in 13 states including Illinois, is also asking residents to avoid using power-gulping appliances like the stove, dishwasher and washers and dryers between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and 7 p.m..

Demand in the PJM Interconnection's territory reached 140,835 megawatts Tuesday morning, far above typical winter usage of 110,000 to 120,000 megawatts, a PJM spokeswoman said. Summertime peaks can reach 165,000 megawatts, the spokesman said.

Paul J. Gough, a smart reporter with the Pittsburgh Business Times, looked back to last year.

It was only a few months ago that two southwestern Pennsylvania coal-burning power plants were closed after FirstEnergy Corp. determined the costs to keep them compliant with environmental regulations were too much.

There was a hue and cry among local elected officials and union leaders concerned about job losses at the Hatfield's Ferry and Mitchell power stations in Greene and Washington counties, south of Pittsburgh, as well as the reliability of the state's electrical grid. But electrical grid operator PJM Interconnection, which has to approve all closings, said it wouldn't affect the region's electrical capacity. FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) closed the plants in October when it couldn't find a buyer.

Coal barge

I remembered all that this morning during a conference call with PJM Interconnection about the strain on the regional electrical capacity due to the weather. PJM hit a record peak for winter use Tuesday morning and expected to surpass that Tuesday afternoon. It asked consumers to conserve electricity and took other steps, including temporarily reducing voltage and asking energy producers to make as much energy as they could to alleviate the concerns.

Gough asked the big question. If those two plants were still operating, could this crisis have been prevented?

Not really, said Michael Kormos, executive vice president of operations at PJM Interconnection. The grid operator had taken into account the fact that the coal-burning plants were shut down or retired, and replaced its electrical generation with other sources, primarily natural gas-fired generating plants.

But Kormos did say, "I would always prefer to have more generation (but) … even with those plants shut down, we will be able to serve this load."

But PJM is requesting its customers to use less electricity.

I ain't buying his answer.

Perhaps Kormos fears an audit from Obama's radicalized IRS.

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