California ISO Declares Stage One Electrical Emergency for Southern California Only; Californians Urged to Conserve

Business Wire, Oct 14, 2005

FOLSOM, Calif. -- The California Independent System Operator (California ISO) issued a southern California Stage One Electrical Emergency at approximately 1:40 pm today, October 14, 2005, through 9 p.m. More than 8,500 megawatts of power within the ISO Control Area are unavailable today due to planned and unplanned outages. This seasonal maintenance comes on a day that Southern California is experiencing unseasonably hot weather.

A Flex Your Power NOW! Power Watch is in effect until 7 p.m. tonight. The ISO is asking consumers to reduce their energy consumption, especially during the afternoon peak hours of 4-6 p.m. Peak demand is expected to be near 36,000 megawatts today.

The California ISO is a not-for-profit public benefit corporation charged with managing the flow of electricity along California's open-market wholesale power grid. The mission of the California ISO is to safeguard the reliable delivery of electricity, and ensure equal access to 25,000 circuit miles of "electron highway." As the impartial operator of the wholesale power grid in the state, the California ISO conducts a small portion of the bulk power markets. These markets are used to allocate space on the transmission lines, maintain operating reserves and match supply with demand in real time.

Continuously updated information about the California ISO control area's electricity supply and the current demand on the power grid is available in Today's Outlook on the web at www.caiso.com.

Other helpful contacts:

        Pacific Gas and Electric        415-973-5930

        Southern California Edison      626-302-2255

        San Diego Gas and Electric      877-866-2066