New York Independent System Operator points to big-time power problems coming to NYC: the city might run short on juice by mid-2030s. The math dont look good - more buildings going electric while old-school power plants keep shutting down
The citys power needs are going up fast (thanks to e-cars data-centers and micro-chip makers) but the supply-side isnt keeping up; experts say we could see a 17-mega-watt gap for one hour in summer-2033‚ growing to 97-mega-watts next year
Some hope comes from the super-sized Champlain Hudson project - a 340-mile power-line bringing hydro-power from Canada (its supposed to be ready in spring-2026). But these big-time infrastructure projects often hit speed-bumps: permits lawsuits and other red-tape can slow things down
The whole situation gets extra-tricky because NYCʼs peak power use might flip-flop from summer to winter - as more folks switch to electric heating. NYISO experts say theres still time to fix this mess: new power stations better energy-use; and faster power-line building could save the day. But if that Canadian power-line project gets stuck in the mud NYC might see problems as soon as 2026