Electricity Conservation Is Urged

Record power demand forecast for California this summer means businesses and residents will have to conserve electricity or face blackouts, the state’s grid operator said Thursday.

Increasing demand in a growing economy and the loss of supplies as some old plants were taken out of service means energy reserves may be unusually low during July and August, according to the California Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s power network.

“With the economy improving, we see increased demand,” Michael Kahn, chairman of the California ISO, said during a press briefing at the grid operator’s headquarters in Folsom, Calif. Residents will have “to be ready to pitch in and conserve.”

The system operator expects demand to rise as high as 44,422 megawatts in August, 3.5% higher than last year’s record. At that time, California plans to have 42,850 megawatts of local power available and 5,862 imported, giving it a 16.4% reserve. One megawatt supplies about 750 homes, according to the grid manager.

Rolling blackouts are not expected this year, although the grid’s annual report says a California power shortage that some experts predicted for 2006 may happen sooner.