California · batteries · demand management
California – one year after the power-cut regime
22 September 2021 · First published in Capital · Original in Capital →
In brief
A year after California's rolling blackouts the author checks whether the fixes work: June 2021 peaked at 41 GW rather than the feared 47, batteries discharged ~773 MW versus 310 MW in 2020, and demand response (OhmConnect) expanded. Risks remain – drought, Diablo Canyon's closure, battery fires (Moss Landing) – but California will speed up renewables and storage, as Texas follows.