A summer of blackouts? Wheezing power grid leaves states at risk.
Why the grid could buckle in large areas of the country as temperatures rise
The nation’s power grid is under stress like never before, with regulators warning that the kind of rolling outages that are now familiar to California and Texas could be far more widespread as hot summer weather arrives.
A large swath of the Midwest that has enjoyed stable electricity for decades is now wrestling with forecasts that it lacks the power needed to get through a heat wave. The regional grid is short the amount of energy needed to power 3.7 million homes.
New Mexico’s attorney general is preparing for “worst case scenarios” after a regional utility warned of possible blackouts. North Dakota regulators advised the state to be ready for rolling outages, Arkansas officials are preparing emergency energy conservation measures, and power companies in Arizona are already sounding alarms about next year.
While America’s power grid has been showing signs of distress for years, the sudden warnings have surprised even those who were sounding an alarm. That’s because extreme weather precipitated by climate change and the early retirement of fossil fuel plants has accelerated the destabilization of the grid — a fragile collection of transfer stations and transmission lines already challenged by a lack of investment.
The situation has unnerved energy experts, who caution an unstable grid could set back plans to move rapidly toward a climate-friendlier economy. The plans rely heavily on most of the nation shifting to electric vehicles and plug-in home appliances such as stoves and water heaters, which will increase demands on the power system.
“We’ve been issuing warnings about the grid for a number of years,” said Mark Denzler, chief executive of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association. “But the swiftness with which this has happened has caught people by surprise. They didn’t think we would be having these issues for a couple of years.” In the event of outages, he said, heavy industrial users are the most likely to experience disruption, as utilities work to avoid cutting off electricity to residences in periods of extreme heat or cold.
The worries of rolling blackouts threaten to compound the stress and anxiety of the shaky economy, the enduring pandemic and energy shortages exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. And it has led to warnings in unexpected places.
Southern Illinois is among the most vulnerable places in the country heading into the summer, according to a newly published forecast by the North American Electric Reliability Corp., a regulatory authority that monitors risks to the grid.
The area, along with large parts of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and other states linked to the regional grid, has been put on notice in the forecast that it is facing a “high risk of energy emergencies during peak summer conditions.” A major reason is that some of the coal plants that regulators assumed would keep running for another year or two are instead coming offline. Some plant operators are choosing to shut down rather than invest in upgrades for coal plants that do not fit with states’ and the federal government’s long-term goals for clean energy.
“We are seeing these retirements occur at a faster pace than expected,” said Jim Robb, chief executive of the regulatory authority. “The economics aren’t great, so coal plant operators are saying ‘uncle.’”
As demand across the Midwest is increasing, the amount of power available to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator grid that services a large swath of it has dropped, leading regulators to warn that outages could accompany extreme summer weather.
Retiring coal plants are just one of many challenges putting unprecedented stress on the nation’s electricity network.
“It’s a soup of things,” Robb said. “The grid is transforming. We are putting on a lot of new resources and learning how they behave.” That is compounded, Robb said, by prolonged stretches of extreme weather, the inability of utilities to get badly needed transmission lines built as they wrestle with land-use disputes, and difficulties delivering natural gas supplies to the power plants that are a crucial backstop to wind and solar energy when the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing.
Some political leaders and utilities in the Midwest are assuring residents that their connections to neighboring grids can provide a backup of energy to avoid blackouts if the Midcontinent system gets overstressed. But energy experts warn those power transfers may not be available in the event of a prolonged heat wave that stretches across many states, as California learned when part of its grid became overwhelmed in the summer of 2020.
“They were counting on transfers,” Robb said. “But it was hot in Seattle, in Vancouver, in Portland. It was hot everywhere. Nobody had extra power to give.”
California has already put its residents on notice that a similar scenario could play out again this summer. State forecasts show that during peak summer periods, California will be short about the amount of electricity it takes to power 1.3 million homes.
How extreme heat is straining California’s electrical grid
Western and Southwestern states are also confronting fresh challenges with their power supply as they head into summer. Among the biggest is a drought already disrupting the hydroelectricity systems that are key to delivering reliable power to large areas of North America. In the event that extreme heat pushes up demand in the West again this summer, a hydroelectricity shortage threatens energy emergencies across the Western Interconnection grid, which serves 80 million people across 14 states and parts of Canada and Mexico. Parched rivers and reservoirs threaten to leave inadequate water flowing through the plants.
Drought is also a worry at nuclear and fossil fuel plants, where low water levels can impede the cooling process that is essential to consistent power generation.
“We are in uncharted territory with respect to water,” said Michael Wara, an energy scholar at Stanford University. “It has all kinds of implications.”
Texas, meanwhile, is still struggling to shore up an embattled power system that the state runs independently of the national grid. The state’s challenge was underscored in May — a relatively temperate month in Texas — when energy officials urged consumers to turn their thermostats up to 78 degrees and avoid the use of large household appliances during a brief period of unseasonably warm weather.
“For such a free-market, capitalist-oriented state, you have to see the irony in this,” said Ed Hirs, an energy economist at the University of Houston. “The last time I was told to turn my thermostat up to 78 degrees it was by Jimmy Carter.”
Drought in Texas threatens to inhibit the operation of steam-generated, or thermal, power plants, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corp., potentially triggering power shortages in the event of extreme heat.
“We’ve let our infrastructure decay to the point where we have these failures,” Hirs said. “Somebody has to stand up and start doing something. We have not even addressed what will happen to the grid when every two-car family switches to one plug-in Ford F150 [pickup truck] and one plug-in passenger car. The grid can’t even handle what we have now.”
Plug-in cars are the future. The grid isn’t ready.
The shift to wind and solar power is playing a role in the stability issues, but there is intense debate over whether the underlying problem is that the transition is happening too quickly or too slowly.
“Everybody has a good sense of where we want to go in terms of decarbonizing the fleet,” Midcontinent chief executive John Bear said during a press event hosted by the U.S. Energy Association. “We are moving in that direction. Unfortunately, we are moving in that direction quite quickly and I am worried about the transition.” He said the storage technologies needed to balance deployment of wind and solar energy are still in development, while at the same time the coal and gas plants that can provide more consistent power are either coming offline or not operating as reliably as they once did because their owners are reluctant to invest in upgrades.
But many other energy experts argue that getting reliable backup power in place to facilitate the transition is not a matter of waiting for new technology, but making the proper investments now.
“The problem is there is nobody in charge,” said M. Granger Morgan, a professor of engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. The national power grid, he said, is a patchwork of regional systems designed to be guided by market demand in each area. Federal regulators have limited authority over it, and many states have constrained their own power to manage energy resources as part of a deregulation push that took hold in the 1990s.
“We don’t have the national regulatory arrangements and incentives in place to implement this energy transition in a coherent and rapid-enough manner,” Granger said. Energy experts point to transmission lines as an area in which the current system is failing. They are sorely needed to bring power generated at solar and wind farms in rural locations across state lines to energy-thirsty cities. But state regulators have been slow to approve them amid protests from property owners who don’t want the power lines on their land.
The problem is high on the list of priorities at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which is working on rules intended to help clear the path for more lines to get built.
Manufacturers in Illinois have been worrying about all of these issues around the grid for some time. Now they face a more immediate challenge: making it through the summer.
“We’re supportive of a cleaner, greener future, but we need to have proper on- and off-ramps,” Denzler said.
Energy experts sound alarm about US electric grid: ‘Not designed to withstand the impacts of climate change’
(CNN)As heat ramps up ahead of what forecasters say will be a hotter than normal summer, electricity experts and officials are warning that states may not have enough power to meet demand in the coming months. And many of the nation’s grid operators are also not taking climate change into account in their planning, even as extreme weather becomes more frequent and more severe.
All of this suggests that more power outages are on the way, not only this summer but in the coming years as well.
Power operators in the Central US, in their summer readiness report, have already predicted “insufficient firm resources to cover summer peak forecasts.” That assessment accounted for historical weather and the latest NOAA outlook that projects for more extreme weather this summer.
But energy experts tell CNN that some power grid operators are not considering how the climate crisis is changing our weather — including more frequent extreme events — and that is a problem if the intent is to build a reliable power grid.
“The reality is the electricity system is old and a lot of the infrastructure was built before we started thinking about climate change,” said Romany Webb, a researcher at Columbia University’s Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. “It’s not designed to withstand the impacts of climate change.”
Webb says many power grid operators use historical weather to make investment decisions, rather than the more dire climate projections, simply because they want to avoid the possibility of financial loss for investing in what might happen versus what has already happened. She said it’s the wrong approach and it makes the grid vulnerable.
“We have seen a reluctance on the part of many utilities to factor climate change into their planning processes because they say the science around climate change is too uncertain,” Webb said. “The reality is we know climate change is happening, we know the impact it has in terms of more severe heatwaves, hurricanes, drought, and we know that all of those things affect the electricity system so ignoring those impacts just makes the problems worse.”
An early heatwave knocked six power plants offline in Texas earlier this month. Residents were asked to limit electricity use, keeping thermostats at 78 degrees or higher and avoid using large appliances at peak times. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, in its seasonal reliability report, said the state’s power grid is prepared for the summer and has “sufficient” power for “normal” summer conditions, based on average weather from 2006 to 2020.
But NOAA’s recently released summer outlook forecasts above average temperatures for every county in the nation.
“We are continuing to design and site facilities based on historical weather patterns that we know in the age of climate change are not a good proxy for future conditions,” Webb told CNN.
When asked if the agency is creating a blind spot for itself by not accounting for extreme weather predictions, an ERCOT spokesperson told CNN the report “uses a scenario approach to illustrate a range of resource adequacy outcomes based on extreme system conditions, including some extreme weather scenarios.”
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation, or NERC — a regulating authority that oversees the health of the nation’s electrical infrastructure — has a less optimistic projection.
In a recent seasonal reliability report, NERC placed Texas at “elevated risk” for blackouts this summer. It also reported that while much of the nation will have adequate electricity this summer, several markets are at risk of energy emergencies.
California grid operators in its summer reliability report also based its readiness analysis on “the most recent 20 years of historical weather data.” The report also notes the assessment “does not fully reflect more extreme climate induced load and supply uncertainties.”
Compounding the US power grid’s supply and demand problem is drought: NERC tells CNN there’s been a 2% loss of reliable hydropower from the nation’s power-producing dams. Add to that the rapid retirement of many coal power plants — all while nearly everything from toothbrushes to cars are now electrified. Energy experts say adding more renewables into the mix will have the dual impact of cutting climate change inducing greenhouse gas emissions but also increasing the nation’s power supply.
Plan B
One Chicago neighborhood is already making plans for how to keep the lights, air conditioning and heat on when the larger grid fails.
In the Bronzeville neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side, solar panels dot the rooftop of a public housing complex. A short drive away, a a giant battery stores energy from the solar panels as well as natural gas generators, creating a micro grid. The state energy company, Commonwealth Eddison, is working with community members to make the neighborhood energy independent.
“Without power we are talking about potential life-threatening situations, so this micro grid provides that backup to be able to deliver power even when the [main] grid isn’t there,” said Paul Pabst, an engineer for Commonwealth Edison.
The project is pending approval but once it’s operating, the micro grid can connect and share power with the main grid. In the event of a blackout, it can disconnect and operate independently, tapping its stored battery energy to power the homes, police station and hospital in the area for four hours.
Yami Newell is a Bronzeville resident and energy advocate. She has seen the cascading effects of an unreliable power grid in Chicago, a place that’s no stranger to weather-related outages from both extreme cold and extreme heat. Losing power in a heatwave can create a dangerous health situation, and for families on a fixed income, losing all of the food in their refrigerator can be financially devastating.
“An energy crisis can become a public health crisis,” Newell told CNN. “It can become a food crisis.”
As communities look for innovative ways to build a more resilient grid, Bronzeville is one possible blueprint. Until states build a more resilient power grid, climate change will force energy companies to continue to take emergency actions, like asking people to limit electricity use or forced rolling blackouts to manage the grid when supply can’t meet demand.
The Art of Landscape Lighting
If you’re looking for a way to enhance your home’s outdoor areas and illuminate your property after dark, landscape lighting is the ideal solution. Landscape lighting is an attractive alternative to more industrial-style fixtures and elevates your yard’s curb appeal. But for it to be done right, landscape lighting installation must be rooted in artistic principles. Here, Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. discusses how to take an artistic approach to landscape lighting.
Picking Areas for Landscape Lighting
It all begins by identifying which areas of your residential or commercial property you’d like to illuminate, and the possibilities are truly endless. Some homeowners love the look of lights lining their driveways and pathways, while others desire to create the perfect mood lighting for hosting evening get-togethers in the backyard. Whatever their vision might be, Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. is here to help people throughout New Jersey with developing an aesthetically sound plan and executing the installation. Common areas where we add landscape lighting features include:
- Patios and decks
- Pool and grill areas
- Front yards and backyards
- Gardens and shrubbery
- Driveways and pathways
- Any other desired outdoor areas
Choosing Lighting Types
Besides technique, the type of lighting you choose can also influence the ambiance you create in a landscape. Two popular lighting options are LED and color, as each gives outdoors settings a distinct vibe. LED lights illuminate spaces about90% more efficiently than traditional incandescent light bulbs and work well with several indoor and outdoor applications. You can use LED lights with numerous landscaping features, including:
- Decks
- Fences
- Fountains
- Gardens
- Patios
- Ponds
- Statues
- Shrubbery
- Walkways
Color is another crucial aspect of lighting because each hue evokes a distinct emotion. Consider the common associations people make with different colors when designing the lighting arrangement in your landscape:
- Red: Passionate and strong
- Orange: Quirky and energizing
- Yellow: Joyful and tranquil
- Green: Hopeful and renewing
- Blue: Cool and inviting
- Purple: Royal and melancholy
- Brown: Relaxed and wholesome
- White: Innocent and peaceful
- Black: Elegant and sophisticated
Forming an Outdoor Lighting Design
The next phase of the process entails turning to a trusted professional like Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. Our team will consult with the homeowner at their residence to nail down blueprints for the types of lights, their brightness levels, and all of the electrical components needed to bring the design to life. If you’re not sure where to start or need some inspiration, the following landscape lighting techniques are very popular – and for good reason:
- Moonlighting: This involves installing a light fixture somewhere up high, like in a tree or on a flagpole, and angling it downwards, creating a similar effect to natural moonlight.
- Wall washing: For more of a glow, wall washing places spotlights or floodlights near the façade that accentuates your home’s best features and provides an evenly distributed ambiance.
- Highlighting: Using floodlights or spotlights, these fixtures are installed a few feet away from the base of a focal point in your landscape, such as a tree, statue, birdbath, or waterfall. The light points upward at this feature, illuminating it to draw the eye to that area of your yard.
- Silhouetting: Typically done with floodlights, this technique creates a sharp silhouette of the chosen feature, which appears on an adjacent wall of your home, patio, garage, or shed. In this case, the lights are installed behind the feature.
- Shadowing: Though similar to silhouetting, shadowing yields a more dramatic appearance. It involves placing lights in front of the chosen feature. The goal is to focus light on an adjacent wall by letting it shine through the feature.
Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. also offers landscape lighting fixtures with many styles and features, making it easy to customize your design and ensure you receive the functionality you’re looking for.
Achieve the Artistic Landscape Lighting of Your Dreams
Ready to take on landscape lighting projects of all sizes, Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. is here to help homeowners across New Jersey achieve their outdoor aesthetic goals. For more information, contact our team today, and be sure to ask about current specials.
Corbin Electrical Services – “We Generate Peace of Mind”
Is Your Electric Vehicle Not Charging Properly?
Purchasing an electric vehicle comes with numerous advantages. One of those benefits is the ability to save money by driving a car that doesn’t require frequent gasoline fill-ups. According to Consumer Reports, electric vehicle owners can expect to save an average of $800 to $1,000 per year compared to gas-powered vehicle owners. However, to make the most out of this investment, drivers need to ensure their vehicles and chargers are both working properly.
Corbin Electrical Services, Inc., which specializes in installing electric vehicle chargers in residential and commercial locations throughout New Jersey, discusses how you can determine if your vehicle’s charger is working at an optimal level.
How to Identify a Problem with Your Electric Vehicle Charger
Understanding the ins and outs of your vehicle’s charger can be difficult given its complexity. And this can make troubleshooting by yourself a tall order. Luckily, there are a few telltale signs that indicate a problem might be present with your electric vehicle’s socket or your charging station, such as:
- Slow charging speeds: The charger you have on hand typically determines how quickly you can expect a full charge. Customers using AC Level 2 charging stations, like the ones Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. installs, can refuel their vehicles in about five to six hours.
- Not achieving peak charge rate: If you notice your electric car isn’t reaching its maximum charge rate, this may be an indication that a problem needs to be resolved.
- Difficulties reaching your vehicle’s range potential: Every electric vehicle has an estimated maximum range that it can reach on a full charge. This range is dependent on the vehicle manufacturer and its battery. If your car isn’t achieving its projected range consistently, there may be an issue with the charging station or your vehicle’s charging port.
- Intermittent issues when connected to a charger: If your electric vehicle is only having charging issues when connected to your home charging station, this may indicate that the problem lies somewhere within your setup.
Top Reasons for Vehicle Charging Issues
Having a charging unit that is not operating at optimal levels can be very frustrating for drivers who rely on their car, truck, or SUV to get to work, school, and other locations daily. These issues can cause your vehicle’s performance to suffer and can likely result in an inconvenience to you. Common reasons for insufficient refueling include:
- Faulty charging cables: If a charging cable is damaged, it can affect refueling performance. Be sure to inspect your charger’s cables to make sure there are no tears or rips present.
- Using the wrong connector to charge your vehicle: Since there is no universal connector for every model, you may find yourself using the wrong style. Using the incorrect connection may be the reason why your vehicle isn’t charging well.
- Malfunctioning charging stations: If your cords are in pristine condition and you are using the correct connector for your vehicle, the issue may lie within the charging station itself. If this is the case, a professional will need to examine your equipment to accurately diagnose the matter. Keep in mind that if you are experiencing charging issues at a different station, your car or truck’s electric port may be the source of the problem. In this instance, you will need to call your vehicle’s manufacturer to have it serviced.
Regardless of where the issue lies, it is important to trust the expertise of a certified technician. Attempting to correct the problem on your own can be dangerous and may lead to injuries. It can also potentially turn a minor issue into a major repair expense.
Fix Your Electric Vehicle’s Charger with Corbin Electrical Services, Inc.
If you notice a problem regarding your electric vehicle’s charging capabilities, call the professionals at Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. Our years of experience have allowed us to secure partnerships with leading brands in the electric car industry, such as Tesla and Qmerit. Also, we sell and install whole-home generator systems to ensure your vehicle stays charged in the most crucial times. For more information about our electric car charger installation services and our services areas throughout New Jersey, contact us today.
Corbin Electrical Services – “We Generate Peace of Mind”
Basics to Maintaining Your Electric Vehicle
Given their significantly fewer parts, electric vehicle powertrains are much easier to maintain compared to internal combustion engines. However, that does not mean electric vehicles do not require any maintenance or upkeep at all. To ensure your vehicle is running at optimal levels, there are a few routine things you can do. Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. discusses the best practices for ensuring your electric-powered car, truck, or SUV is in proper working order.
Electric Vehicle Service Solutions
Having a regularly scheduled maintenance routine can increase your electric vehicle’s longevity. While the components may vary from fuel-powered vehicles, there are several key services to consider, such as:
Battery Checks
The most crucial component to your electric vehicle’s performance and lifespan is its battery. How well you maintain this part is as important as your charging habits because they will directly affect your vehicle’s condition. Clients can ensure their battery is well maintained by doing the following:
- Continuously keep the battery at a 20% to 80% charge: By keeping your vehicle’s power source within this range, you reduce the risk of overcharging. This can result in premature battery degradation.
- Access adequate charging stations: Your charging practice plays a crucial role in your car’s battery life. Drivers who have access to the correct electric car charger can increase the lifespan of their vehicle’s battery. If you do not currently have an appropriate charging station, one can be installed at your residential
- Avoid parking your electric vehicle in extreme temperatures: Subjecting your electric vehicle to extreme conditions, such as scorching or freezing temperatures, can affect the battery’s range. However, storing your vehicle in a garage between uses can help.
Brake Monitoring
Electric vehicles have a unique braking system compared to the traditional vehicles on the road. It uses motor resistance to slow the automobile down. This friction is turned into power for your electric vehicle, as energy is sent back into the battery. Typically, this type of braking system lasts much longer. Electric vehicle owners should have their brakes inspected every 22,000 mi or for every two years of ownership.
Tire Rotations
Just as you would for any other vehicle, be sure to schedule routine tire rotations. This service helps make sure they wear evenly and prevents your electric car or truck from favoring one side, or pulling, as you drive. If you notice this tendency in your vehicle, it’s imperative to have your tires rotated and realigned, as it can damage the suspension system. A good rule is to have the tires rotated and the air pressure checked every six months.
Software Updates
With a heavy reliance on modern technology, electric vehicle manufacturers are always looking to improve upon their products. Manufacturers can install these performance upgrades through timely software updates. Generally, this service comes at no cost to the vehicle’s owner, but it is your responsibility to be on the lookout for them.
Why Are Eclectic Cars Generally Easier to Maintain?
An electric-powered vehicle is not only better for the environment but also easier on your wallet. One of the biggest advantages to owning an electric model is the less work it takes to maintain it compared to fuel-powered models, which results in more money in your pocket. It’s estimated that electric vehicle owners will spend up to 40% less on maintaining their cars compared to gas-powered vehicles. Some of the reasons why it’s easier to maintain an electric vehicle include:
- Regular oil changes are not needed: Because there is no integral combustion engine, no oil changes are needed for an electric car.
- Fewer fluids used: The only fluids many electric vehicles need include brake fluid, windshield washer fluid, and coolant.
- Better warranties: With fewer components than a traditional car, truck, or SUV, an electric vehicle’s warranty is more inclusive. What’s more, these warranties cover the most expensive and vital component – the battery. Federal regulations mandate that electric cars are backed with a battery warranty that covers at least eight years or 100,000 mi of usage.
Keep Your Electric Vehicle in Proper Working Order
Ensure your electric vehicle continues performing at satisfactory levels in partnership with Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. This kind of vehicle is an investment, and you can make the most of it by installing an electric vehicle charger at your home or commercial business. For more information about our services, contact us today.
Corbin Electrical Services – “We Generate Peace of Mind”
Generac CEO says demand for power generators is high: ‘We can’t make them fast enough’
- Demand for alternative home powering sources is surging amid an increase in extreme weather events, such as the unprecedented snowfall across Texas, leading to a backlog of orders for backup generators supplied by Generac.
- “We can’t make them fast enough, and we’re doing everything we can to supply more product in the market,” Generac CEO Aaron Jagdfeld told CNBC on Thursday.
- “There’s just a backlog of everything,” he added.
Severe weather and associated power outages across the United States in the past year have elevated demand for backup generators, bottlenecking suppliers such as Generac.
As millions of Texas residents continue to battle through a dayslong massive power shut-off in response to unprecedented snowfall across the state, Generac CEO Aaron Jagdfeld said requests for alternative home powering sources have surged.
“We can’t make them fast enough, and we’re doing everything we can to supply more product in the market,” he said Wednesday on CNBC’s “Power Lunch.”
With demand for heat at extreme levels, utilities in Texas, an energy-independent state, cut off power to millions to reduce stress on power grids. The rolling shut-offs have led consumers to seek out automatic home backup generators, much like power shut-offs did during high heat and fire risks in California last year, Jagdfeld said.
The weather emergency has led to discussions about the reliability of power grids in the U.S. As California dealt with power outages last year, Jagdfeld said he expects large-scale changes to come to electric grids and infrastructure in due time.
Generac, which produces backup generators for residential and commercial usage, has been running a Wisconsin plant, where most of its products are made, at full capacity since the coronavirus pandemic hit and homebound Americans began taking on home improvement projects. Hurricane seasons have also affected order volumes.
Given the company’s backlog, local permitting processes and the contractors involved, it can take 20 weeks for residents to get a generator installed in their home, he said. Generac has about 7,000 dealers in its network, but the company needs more, he said. Services that handle inspections, gas meter upgrades and other parts of the installation process are also reportedly dealing with long queues.
“There’s just a backlog of everything,” he added.
The company announced earlier this month that it will open a 421,000-square-foot facility in South Carolina to boost manufacturing capabilities of home standby generators and associated energy technologies, serving the Southeast. Generac said the project would supply about 450 new jobs within two years.
Shares of Generac have more than tripled from 2020. The stock price is up 253% since the beginning of last year. In the past week, the stock has rallied 29% to $355.32 as of Wednesday’s close.
Generac reported revenues of nearly $2.49 billion in 2020, up 12.7% from $2.2 billion in 2019. The double-digit growth was powered by business in the second half of the year when revenues surged more than 22% compared with the 1% growth recorded in the first half of the year.
The U.S. economy experienced major business shutdowns in the first and second quarters of 2020 after the first cases of Covid-19 transmissions were reported in the country.
This week’s snowstorm hit multiple Southern states with frigid temperatures — single digits in some instances — that their residents are not accustomed to, leaving dozens dead and more than 3 million customers without power in the past three days. The storm has affected about 100 million people living in Texas, Arkansas and the Lower Mississippi Valley, according to the National Weather Service.
“I know there’s a lot of people suffering down there right now,” Jagdfeld said. “We’re doing our best to get as much product as we can into that market.”
Eagle Award
Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. was recognized on 2/9/2021 as a Generac Eagle Award Recipient at the 2021 Virtual Generac Dealer Convention. The Eagle Award recognizes a dealer that handled the pandemic crisis with cutting edge processes and procedures triaging etc. to keep their employees and customers safe in an extremely difficult and fluid environment while doubling their business.
Corbin Electrical Services, Inc. was also recognized again as a Premier dealer, Generac’s highest dealer rating representing Generac’s top 2% of dealers.
STABILE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION LETTER
September 8, 2020
Adam Corbin
Corbin Electrical Service
35 Vanderburg Road
Marlboro, NJ 07746
Dear Mr. Corbin,
Today was the final installation of our new generator. We have been so impressed by all of your employees we have delt with that I wanted to tell you about our process with your company. I saw an advertisement on my Facebook feed for your company. I received Estimates from three companies, but once we met your Sales Engineer, Richard Gunsalus, our mind was made up to go with Corbin. He was so professional and explained everything so thoroughly we were sold.
We next heard from Barbara Vorrius regarding our application for approval within our Greenbriar Woodlands Community. She put together a packet for us to submit for approval. My husband is on the review board and when they saw how through and well put together Barbara had done it, they were so impressed. There have been many applications for generators, but they said ours was the best they had seen. She guided us through the permits and took care of everything for us.
Once all permits were completed, Desiree Jackson emailed a schedule for installation dates. Her e-mail was very clear so we knew exactly what would be happening. Unfortunately, the dates she gave us were for mid-October. Since we had started the process the end of June, we felt mid-October was unacceptable and e-mailed her back.
Step in Kayla Eastmond, who called us the next day and was able to schedule the installations much quicker. Kayla is a true asset and any time we have called, she has been most gracious and responded immediately. You should clone her!
She scheduled:
Luis Salinas and Kevin who came on 8/29. They did the electrical work and delivered the generator. They were thorough and explained what they were going to do, worked in the rain and walked through our house and labeled every circuit breaker with exactly what was on it.
Ryan McCloskey came on 9/2 and did all the plumbing. He did a wonderful job looking at the gas survey lines and decided he didn’t need to dig underground, but ran the gas hookup from the meter to the generator along the house, Inspector who came from Toms River the next day gave approval right away.
Kayla scheduled the final electrical for 9/14, but was then able to have it done today, 9/8. Michael Homsher came and did the final hookup and gave us our operating instructions and welcome packet. He also hooked us up to the WIFI. He explained about the self-testing and made sure we didn’t have any further questions before he left.
In your welcome packet, you mentioned that you hoped to get a 5 out of 5 in ratings….we would give your team from start to finish a 10+, but know we can only give a 5! Because of your excellent service, we are gladly referring you to our neighbors and one of them already has a sales appointment. We will get our referrals in to you right away.
We feel it is important to acknowledge people who go above and beyond and I feel that everyone we delt with during this experience, should receive the compliments they so deserve.
Thank you for your superior service and for making us feel extremely secure for when the next storm should come.
Thank you,
Lin & John Stabile
1581 Lacebark Road
Toms River, NJ 08755
201-887-8123
4 major hurricanes are predicted as part of an above-normal 2020 Atlantic hurricane season
(CNN)-Sixteen named storms, including eight hurricanes, are forecast for the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, according to early predictions released Thursday by experts at Colorado State University.
Four of the hurricanes will become major storms of Category 3 to 5, with sustained winds of at least 111 mph, the projections indicate for the season that runs from June 1 to November 30.
2020 Atlantic hurricane season names
These are the names of tropical storms or hurricanes that may form in the Atlantic Ocean in 2020. Names are alphabetical, and alternate between male and female. Needing the entire list in a season is rare.
Arthur
Bertha
Cristobal
Dolly
Edouard
Fay
Gonzalo
Hanna
Isaias
Josephine
Kyle
Laura
Marco
Nana
Omar
Paulette
Rene
Sally
Teddy
Vicky
Wilfred
The chance that at least one major hurricane will make landfall in 2020 along the US coastline is 69%, compared with an average over the last century of 52%, researchers said. There is a 95% chance — the average is 84% — that at least one hurricane this year will make landfall in the US.
“The last season with four or more major hurricanes was the record damage-causing year of 2017 that saw Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria,” CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller said. “All caused significant damage in the US and Caribbean.”
Six major hurricanes formed that year in the Atlantic basin. The seasonal average is 12 named storms, including six hurricanes.
The forecasts do not precisely predict where the storms might strike, and the probability of landfall for any single location is low.
“Coastal residents are reminded that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season for them,” researchers Philip Klotzbach, Michael M. Bell and Jhordanne Jones wrote in the report.
Confident in their forecast
The above-normal activity was predicted consistently across types of forecasts, Klotzbach said.
“This year, we used four different techniques to develop our forecast,” he told CNN Weather. “And they all point towards an active season.”
Colorado State in its April predictions hasn’t forecast four major hurricanes for a season since 2013 — a year that didn’t quite perform as the early forecast expected.
“I’d say that this year, we’re pretty confident,” Klotzbach said, citing a lack of El Niño conditions that can mess with expectations.
When El Niño is present, it reduces Atlantic hurricane activity due to increased vertical wind shear — changes in wind speed and direction with height that prevent hurricanes from building.
Average conditions create a more favorable environment for tropical storm development.
“Also, the tropical Atlantic is quite a bit warmer than it has been the past few years at this time,” Klotzbach said.
Sea surface temperatures are one of the ingredients needed to fuel hurricanes. The warmer the ocean, the more fuel available for the storms to tap into.
Although four major hurricanes are forecast this season, that doesn’t mean any necessarily will hit the US coast.
“Two of the last three years have had major hurricane landfalls in the US (2017 and 2018),” Miller said. “Before that, there was a 12-year drought without a single major hurricane landfall anywhere in the country (from Hurricane Wilma in 2005 to Hurricane Harvey in 2017).”
“The last major hurricane to strike the US was Hurricane Michael in 2018,” he said.
Forecasting this far in advance can be accurate
The models are based on 40 years of data and conditions, including sea surface temperatures, sea level pressures, vertical wind shear levels and El Niño.
April is about the earliest experts can get a good indication of what conditions will be like during the hurricane season.
“We find that there is just too much uncertainty with the future state of both (El Niño) and the Atlantic prior to that time,” Klotzbach says.
Still, these statistical and dynamical models fail in some years, the researchers made clear.
“Last year, we forecast a near-average hurricane season and ended up a bit more active than we thought,” Klotzbach said.
Their April 2019 forecast predicted five hurricanes for that year; six were observed. They forecast two of those to be major hurricanes; three were observed.
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Their April forecast did vary significantly from the total number of named storms in 2019: 13 were predicted, while 18 formed, though many were short-lived and weak.
This marks the 37th year that the university’s team has issued an Atlantic seasonal hurricane forecast. The official forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will release in May.
The hurricane research team from Colorado State will also release updated forecasts on June 4, July 7 and August 6.
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