The Senate Democratic Policy Committee recently held a virtual public hearing on the state’s power grid.
Last year, there were 1.99 million customers who experienced a power outage, according to the Pennsylvania Utility Commission (PUC) 2019 Electric Service Reliability Report.
There were 52 reportable outage events, most the result of severe thunderstorms. This is the highest number of outages since the PUC began collecting reliability data in 1993.
Many electric distribution companies’ performance metrics were rated as “poor” in the report.
“At the end of the day, we need to know that Pennsylvanians will have access to reliable electric service,” Sen. Steve Santarsiero (D-Bucks), who requested the hearing, said. “Electricity reliability is not a new issue, but one that we have seen consistently worsen, particularly as we’ve seen a rise in the number of storms that pack high winds and hard downpours. Year-round electric reliability and preparedness is vital to the health and safety of all Pennsylvanians, and an issue that must be addressed both by the industry itself and the agencies that regulate it.”
Among those testifying were Gladys Brown Dutrieuille, PUC chairwoman; Kevin Walker, Duquesne Light Co. vice president and chief operations officer; and Terry Fitzpatrick, Energy Association of Pennsylvania president and CEO.