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| Friday Dec 27, 2024 | |
| The holiday spirit has several songs associated to this time of the year with “Let it Snow” carrying the lyrics “the weather outside is frightful, yet so delightful…..”. For example, New York City witnessed its first snowfall blanketing the city on Christmas in 15 years (not since 2009) while Upper Midwest was on the brink of a snowless Santa Clause run if it were not for a couple of storms that dropped the white stuff a few days prior. Since that time, the warmer temperatures have melted most of the snow and we are now staring at a not-so-white New Year. The Pacific Northwest is a region we watch closely given the hydro landscape up/down the Columbia, Snake and tributary rivers that eventually move its water out to the Pacific Ocean. ... » read more | |
| Thursday Dec 26, 2024 | |
| New England is no stranger to wintertime tightness, both for the ISONE electrical grid as well as the gas pipelines, starting with Algonquin Pipeline. Every year as the weather dips cold enough, we see gas prices start to run up on Algonquin Pipeline as the limited capacity on the pipe means that rising rescom heating demand in the region eats up most or all of the available gas molecules, crowding out power burns. This then causes an issue on the power side, as the lost supply from the drop in gas-fired generation leaves ISONE searching to make up the lost generation from other sources, as well as find the incremental MW for the increased load that comes with cooler temperatures. This pushes Massachusetts Hub upwards until the price signal is sufficient to bring in the ... » read more | |
| Tuesday Dec 24, 2024 | |
| Our latest hydro report, titled "Wet (Not White) Christmas" provides detailed insights into the hydro world with projections for the coming months. The Pacific Northwest has recently seen a temporary break from persistent rainfall that increased water flow and hydro generation, particularly in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Despite this pause, heavy rain is expected to return, especially in the northern parts of the region. The ongoing precipitation has significantly impacted the seasonal water supply forecast, with the January-July water supply projection rising by more than 10 MAF over the past two weeks. However, the forecast could adjust as drier weather is expected in the coming days, although more precipitation is expected at the start of the new year. Figure 1 | NWRFC Jan-Jul ... » read more | |
| Monday Dec 23, 2024 | |
| In recent years, the only thing you can count on from California’s rivers has been their unpredictability, with high highs and low lows. We saw this once again illustrated a month ago. Long-term forecasts had predicted a slow start leading into a near-average water year. This was interrupted by a bomb cyclone and atmospheric river which delivered feet of snow to the Sierra Nevadas and in some places broke records due to arriving so early in the season. They are no crystal ball, but these forecasts are an important tool for looking into the future of California’s hydroelectric system. Figure 1 | San Joaquin & Sacramento River Flows (MAF) The above figure shows a composite of flows in the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers, the two watersheds on which California’s dams ... » read more | |
| Friday Dec 20, 2024 | |
| A few weeks ago, we wrote about the Mid C returning to earth as prices have declined from $100+ to swinging between $38 and $60 per MWh. During the same week we wrote about increasing solar and battery capacity in the CAISO showing some of our dashboards as part of the eCommerce Platinum Plus package. It’s stunning that the solar capacity (Behind the Meter (BTM) and Utility) has reached 40 GW in CAISO, up from 24 GW in January 2019. The amount of capacity additions in 2023 was a record and now with reporting only through October 2024 we expect 2024 annual capacity additions to set a new high in the WECC. Figure 1 | WECC Capacity Additions Figure 1 above shows historical capacity additions by fuel type across the WECC taken from the October 2024 EIA 860 which was ... » read more | |
| Thursday Dec 19, 2024 | |
| At EGPS, we spend a lot of time looking at ERCOT historical data. Usually only as far back as 2017 or so, maybe 2014, and very rarely earlier—with how fast the grid has been changing over the past decade, going back farther than a few years can start to have diminishing usefulness for making conjectures about the future. ERCOT has been the poster child for how renewable expansion can impact price formation and balancing within an ISO with the rapid growth that has taken place within the state. No part of ERCOT has been more heavily affected by renewables than the West Zone, and in the entire span of historical data we look at, at least one trend has been pretty reliable: on average, due to its relatively low demand and high renewable penetration, West Hub has the lowest ... » read more | |
| Wednesday Dec 18, 2024 | |
| With the first official day of winter just three short days away, a lot of eyes are on the temperature forecasts. Whether it’s an ice storm in the Pacific Northwest, unprecedented freezing temperatures in Texas, or a blizzard blanketing the Northeast, cold events in winter can have huge impacts on energy markets. With natural gas needed for heating demand, grids find themselves needing more expensive fuel sources to meet increasing demand. In production areas, freeze-offs can lead to diminishing natural gas supply. Higher chances for equipment failure and outages can lead to scarcity events when power is needed the most. Here at EnergyGPS, we track areas that are expected to experience below-normal temperatures by scouring the forecasts for the tell-tale wave of blue. Alberta is one ... » read more | |
| Tuesday Dec 17, 2024 | |
| Our Monthly Renewable Reports provide a comprehensive overview of the energy landscape across North American power markets, with a particular focus on the impact of renewable energy sources. Each month, the report analyzes the performance of renewable resources in various regions, highlighting their influence on grid operations, pricing, and overall system dynamics. By examining the latest trends, weather impacts, and generation patterns, the report offers valuable insights into the evolving role of renewables in the energy transition. In November, the renewable energy landscape across North American power markets saw various developments. In CAISO, wind output remained steady, but the shape of its hourly profile flattened. Solar generation shifted lower as the system transitioned ... » read more | |
| Monday Dec 16, 2024 | |
| The past decade has seen a tight contest between SoCal and PGAE Citygate for the title of California’s highest priced natural gas hub. In the previous year, however, this once great contest looked more like Jake Paul v. Mike Tyson: structurally favoring one side and not very interesting to watch. But finally last week we had a comeback, with SoCal Citygate taking back the crown, at least for a few days, for the first time since February 2024. Figure 1 | SoCal Net Injections 7 Day Average (mmcf) When looking for a cause, the obvious cause is storage activity. California’s winter-to-date has been mild in both the north and south with both hubs having plenty of gas stored away and yet to taste the dire demands that winter can cause. The two have differed in their ability ... » read more | |
| Friday Dec 13, 2024 | |
| Locked in fierce competition for the title of curtailment king, ERCOT and CAISO are raising the bar every month. So, following up to our recent note on CAISO “Too Much of a Good Thing”, this week we bring attention to ERCOT where we observe an acceleration in renewable curtailment this quarter. The sun is still shining, and the wind is blowing, but peak demand is down throughout Texas as summer heat is now far in the rear-view mirror. The net result is there are plenty of sad and unwanted MWh's in ERCOT looking for a home. Figure 1 below, taken from our December 2024 ERCOT Monthly Curtailment Dashboard, shows that solar curtailment in November nearly quadrupled from 59.6 GWh in 2023 to 209.6 GWh in 2024 while wind curtailment doubled from 289 GWh in 2023 ... » read more | |