California unlikely to run short of electricity this summer thanks to storms, new power sources

RICHMOND, Calif. (AP) — California regulators say the state is unlikely to run short of electricity this summer (2023), thanks to new power sources and a wet winter that filled reservoirs to restart hydroelectric power plants shuttered during the drought. Officials say more than 8,000 megawatts of new wind, solar and battery power will come online by September. One megawatt of electricity is enough to power about 750 homes. California normally has more than enough electricity to power the homes and businesses of its more than 39 million people. But the electrical grid has trouble when it gets really hot and everyone turns on their air conditioners at the same time. California ran short of power in 2020. That caused brief blackouts for hundreds of thousands of households.