California residents were asked to voluntarily conserve power again Friday as the heat wave that is baking the U.S. West strained the state’s energy grid and raised the possibility of rotating outages.
As temperatures spiked on Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an emergency proclamation that suspended certain permitting requirements — allowing power plants to ramp up operations if necessary to meet the demand for electricity. The proclamation cited the “extreme heat peril” facing the state this week.
The California Independent System Operator, which runs the state’s energy grid, issued a Flex Alert for 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday. People were urged to set their thermostats to 78 degrees or higher and to avoid using washers, dishwashers and other major appliances.
However, the period passed without any outages and the operator thanked residents for their conservation efforts.
During an intense Western heat wave last August, the state had two days of rotating outages that affected more than 200,000 people. They were the first such blackouts since 2001.
Power officials said the electrical grid has had upgrades since then, including transmission improvements and adding four times the amount of power stored in lithium-ion batteries. Boosting the 500 megawatts worth of battery storage currently to 2,000 megawatts by August could be crucial when solar power generation tails off after dark.
In all, about 3,500 megawatts of capacity will be added to the grid — enough to power about 2.6 million homes.
Hot temperatures in the central San Joaquin Valley broke records Friday.
Interior areas of the state broiled. Record-breaking triple-digit highs were reported in the San Joaquin Valley. Hanford in Kings County hit 110 degrees, breaking the previous high for the day set in 1917. Southern California desert communities also broke or tied records. Palm Springs had a high of 119, breaking a record for the day set in 1893.
The temperatures were much cooler in the state’s coastal areas.
The heat wave was expected to continue into the weekend, with worst of the torrid conditions affecting California’s interior regions.
The heat was blamed on a dome of high pressure that has covered the U.S. West.
The heat wave came amid a drought that has dried up vegetation and increased fire danger. There have been a number of small wildfires around California this week. But the state has avoided the fierce gusts that drove last year’s devastating blazes.
Correction: A previous version of this story gave an incorrect temperature for Palm Springs Friday. This post has been updated.
