STAGE 3 EMERGENCY NOTICE [200100609]

Effective 01/11/2001 at 08:50 the California Independent System Operator has implemented Stage 3 of the Electrical Emergency Plan. The Plan has been implemented for the following reason(s):

insufficient reserves and energy

Stage 3 is expected to be in effect from HE 9 through HE 22.

Participating transmission owners are to notify the Utility Distribution Companies within their operational areas.

Stage 3: Operating reserves are expected to fall below 1-1/2%. The UDC will implement their electrical emergency plan and/or other load dropping to effect 0 MW of involuntary firm demand reductions (i.e., in addition to ALL Interruptible Service reductions) no later than 0 hours.

This message is from Market Operations at the California ISO.

Notice issued at: 01/11/2001 08:49

-- PHO (owennos@bigfoot.com), January 11, 2001

Answers

California Independent System Operator

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Patrick Dorinson

January 11, 2001 Director of Communications

1 (888) 516-NEWS

STAGE THREE ELECTRICAL EMERGENCY DECLARED

No Rotating Blackouts At This Time, But Outages May be Imminent (Folsom, CA) The California Independent System Operator (California ISO) declared a Stage Three Emergency today at 8:50 a.m., Thursday, January 11, 2001. No rotating blackouts have not been ordered at this time, but may be imminent. The Stage Three declaration enables the California ISO to receive emergency assistance from federal and state agencies. The forecasted peak demand is 33,488 megawatts at approximately 6:00 p.m. this evening. A record amount of generation outages is being reported to the California ISO. Overnight the amount of power unavailable to the ISO-controlled grid increased 1,600 megawatts when four units were taken off line. The total amount of generation offline is now at 15,000 megawatts or more than one-third of all the available power in the state. The California ISO is strongly urging consumers statewide to conserve electricity today. Stage One and Stage Two emergencies were called earlier today and are in effect until midnight. The Stage Three emergency is in effect until 10 p.m. Stage Three of the state’s Electrical Emergency Plan (EEP) is required when operating reserves fall below one-and-a-half percent.

-- PHO (owennos@bigfoot.com), January 11, 2001.

Rolling Blackouts Threaten Calif. By Don Thompson Associated Press Writer Thursday, Jan. 11, 2001; 12:24 p.m. EST

SACRAMENTO, Calif. –– California faced the threat of rolling blackouts Thursday as a storm hampered a key nuclear power plant in the already energy-strapped state.

The state's energy regulators declared a Stage Three power alert at midmorning as electricity reserves dropped below 1.5 percent, but stopped short of ordering scattered blackouts.

The California Independent System Operator, keeper of much of the state's power grid, asked Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to cut off power to customers who had volunteered to let their power be cut in exchange for lower rates, ISO spokesman Pat Dorinson said.

California's power production fell more than 15,000 megawatts as a storm carrying high winds and heavy rain battered California. One megawatt is enough to power 1,000 homes for an hour.

Power plants hit by the storm included the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in San Luis Obispo along the Pacific north of Los Angeles, which was hampered by high surf that blew sea kelp into the plant's intake valves.

Some of the plants were down for scheduled maintenance, Dorinson said. Another plant that produced 1,600 megawatts of power went offline suddenly Wednesday night, he said.

"We haven't taken off any customers yet, but that could change in the next half hour," he said. "It's going to get ugly today."

© Copyright 2001 The Associated Press

-- PHO (owennos@bigfoot.com), January 11, 2001.

Living in California right now doesn't sound too re-assuring, does it?

-- Nancy7 (nancy7@hotmail.com), January 11, 2001.

For the duration of twenty years, I found California to be a very scarey place to live. The present electrical problems were only the tip of the iceberg......try 90% per cent of your water supply coming from another state. Not to mention, severe overcrowding, crime, high taxes and out of control housing prices. I don't miss it at all.

-- Kit Tambo (bob@hbra.com), January 11, 2001.