New York City’s Aging Power Barges Show the Blackout Risk Is Real

kxwoj}nf47x06u6m9zvm4{29_media_dl_4.png US EPA, Bloomberg

Article content

(Bloomberg) — As another spell of intense heat gripped New York City last month, two floating power stations off Brooklyn’s Sunset Park heaved into life.

Article content

The Narrows and Gowanus plants on the East River are a last line of defense against blackouts, which risk upending daily life for millions of New Yorkers. But with power demand surging, they’re now being called upon constantly to help keep the city’s lights on.

Article content

Article content

Article content

That might not be a problem if they were state-of-the-art. But both are over half a century old. Their continued usage is the embodiment of an aging grid that is rapidly becoming unfit for the 21st century, even as the economy electrifies. That raises the odds of a “catastrophic failure,” according to Gary Cunningham, director of market research for Tradition Energy.

Article content

Article content

“There comes a point where, if you’re operating older resources at their maximum for protracted periods of time, they will fail,” Cunningham said, adding that the system is already near its limits and could have to drastically reduce demand in the future. “New York is probably in the worst position as far as the need to do strategic blackouts.”

Article content

America is entering a new era. After two decades when demand for electricity was stagnant, it’s booming again. Electric vehicles, heat pumps and data centers for artificial intelligence are straining the grid throughout the year like never before. Extreme weather fueled by climate change is another stressor. 

Article content

The need to upgrade the power grid is urgent in New York, a city of more than 8 million that is struggling with brutal heat this summer. 

Article content

Article content

As temperatures climbed to 100F (38C) in early July, Consolidated Edison Co., which runs the city’s electric utility, told hundreds of thousands of customers to conserve energy as it worked to repair equipment. It said it would distribute dry ice to those who had lost power in the borough of Queens. 

Article content

“New York’s electricity system, whether it’s upstate or New York City, we have the oldest energy infrastructure in the United States,” said Gavin Donohue, chief executive officer of the Independent Power Producers of New York Inc. “The state of the infrastructure certainly has everybody in this business concerned.” 

Article content

A ConEd spokesperson said its system performed reliably through the July heat dome, “reflecting the value of continued investments in grid modernization and resilience,” and that despite scattered brief outages, “the vast majority of the 3.7 million customers we serve had uninterrupted service during record-breaking heat.”

Article content

Curt Morgan, the chief executive officer of Alpha Generation LLC, which operates the so-called peaker plants, said in a statement that they “provide the dependable, dispatchable power that keeps the city running.” He added that the plants get “significant investment” each year and their sites can be part of the city’s future electric system since they are “ideal for repowering with new technology.”