Major US Blackout Anniversary Renews Call for Power Grid Updates

Transmission developers are marking 20 years since the biggest blackout in North American history with calls for US energy regulators to finalize a rule to make it easier to invest in making the power grid more resilient.

In August 2003, a cascading blackout that knocked out power to more than 50 million people in the Northeast US and Canada highlighted fundamental shortfalls in managing a grid that spans multiple states and regions. The blackout prompted the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to take steps to address those challenges.

Today, the goal of achieving net-zero emissions from the grid by 2035 while ...