They were ordered shut down and canceled through the network that includes Oklahoma, as energy demand exceeds supply

Oklahomans may be wondering when their electricity may be turned off or returned after local utilities, including Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co., were briefly ordered on Monday.

The Southwest Power Pool (SPP), the regional transmission operator that oversees the network serving parts or all 14 states between here and Canada, notified users of its system at 12:30 p.m. shut down parts of your system in an attempt to keep power supplies available.

The order was generated because the use of electricity had exceeded the amount of generation available and retentions were needed, officials said, to avoid further more widespread and uncontrolled outages. He requested that operators reduce their service by approximately 1.5% of the maximum demand on Monday morning.

About 50 minutes later, the SPP lowered its alert status to a level 2, suspending the need for blackouts, at least for Monday afternoon.

“But things are changing. We hope our cargo recovers later tonight and we could very well be back in this situation and in and out of the mandatory restrictions by Thursday, ”said Lanny Nickell, chief operating officer, on Monday afternoon. of SPP.

“In our history as a network operator, this is an unprecedented event and marks the first time that SPP has had to request controlled service interruptions. It is a last resort that we understand is a burden on our members’ public services and the customers they serve, but it is a step we are consciously taking to prevent circumstances from getting worse, which could lead to uncontrolled disruptions of even greater magnitude. “.

As far as what can happen, meteorological and conservation efforts will play a central role in answering this question.

“It all depends on whether we have enough energy to meet demand,” Nickell said.