by Kristinn Taylor at The Gateway Pundit
Just days after passing a law banning new sales of gasoline powered cars by 2035, California is urging residents to avoid charging their electric vehicles during peak hours in the coming week to help ward off blackouts during an expected heatwave.
File screen image of Kamala Harris charging an electric vehicle.
“During a Flex Alert, consumers are urged to reduce energy use from 4-9 p.m. when the system is most stressed because demand for electricity remains high and there is less solar energy available. The top three conservation actions are to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles, and turn off unnecessary lights.“
Excerpt from the San Diego Union-Tribune) on the warning:
The California Independent System Operator that manages the electric grid for about 80 percent of the Golden State warns the power system is expected to come under strain as homeowners and businesses crank up their air conditioning units. Weather forecasters expect temperatures to climb on Wednesday and intensify through the start of next week.
Peak load for electricity is currently projected to exceed 48,000 megawatts on Labor Day, the highest of the year, said the system operator, known as the California ISO for short, in a heat bulletin released late Tuesday. For perspective, 48,000 MW is about 14 percent higher than Tuesday’s peak.
…”If weather or grid conditions worsen,” the ISO bulletin said, the grid manager “may issue a series of emergency notifications to access additional resources and prepare market participants and the public for potential energy shortages and the need to conserve.”
That could well mean issuing a Flex Alert, a statewide request for customers to voluntarily reduce energy consumption from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Those are the hours when California’s grid is under the most pressure because production from solar decreases and eventually disappears in the evening hours — but the weather is still hot and energy demand remains high because people are still consuming electricity.
California’s electric vehicle mandate…
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