CPS ENERGY COMPLETES STORM RESTORATION AS MORE SEVERE WEATHER CREATES WIDENING GAP IN SUPPLY CHAIN
September 30, 2021 (SAN ANTONIO) – All CPS Energy customers, impacted by severe storms that moved through Greater San Antonio Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning, now have their power restored. We are currently operating at normal levels.
The energy company’s hard-working skilled-craft team members worked around-the-clock to restore power across Greater San Antonio. The storms, packing nearly 9,000 lightning strikes and high winds, contributed to power outages of at least five minutes for nearly 54,000 customers.
CPS ENERGY’S PRIORITY REMAINS RESTORING POWER QUICKLY & SAFELY:
“Our crews diligently worked around the clock. All impacted customers were restored by 10 p.m. Wednesday,” said Paul Barham, Chief Grid Optimization & Resiliency Officer. “The number of lightning strikes in these storms was incredible. Like lightning does, the strikes were drawn like magnets to our poles, transformers, and other equipment, causing significant damage to our system.”
Storms, like this recent one, wreak havoc on energy poles, lines, and transformers that serve individual homes and businesses. Lightning strikes and wind gusts bring down lines and equipment that must be replaced. The restoration process starts primarily with areas that had the largest number of customer outages and continues until everyone is brought back on line.
EQUIPMENT SUPPLY SHORTAGES ARE ALSO BEING IMPACTED BY STORMS:
“For more than a year, our team has worked to manage our stock of critical materials as the global supply chain challenge continues. Raw material, manufacturing, and shipping disruptions are happening all at the same time. Major weather crises like Hurricane Ida have added more strain to the world’s stressed supply chains.
While we are being directly impacted by these global and national problems, local storms like the one early this week make our business environment more challenging. As we face more storms through Saturday, our priority remains making sure we have the materials on hand to restore power to our existing customers,” said Chief Administrative Officer Lisa Lewis.
Given the growing supply chain shortages, CPS Energy must do its best to prioritize using equipment in stock for restoring power to existing customers. Unfortunately, this may add to delays to new construction projects.
STAY PERSONALLY PREPARED & SAFE:
CPS Energy reminds customers to always be prepared for potential outages, which is a call to action particularly highlighted during September with it being National Emergency Preparedness Month. Customers are advised to have an emergency kit that should include battery-powered LED lights, flashlights, food, and other essentials. Customers should also have an emergency plan for where they will relocate, if needed, during an extended outage. Resource information and lists to help prepare for emergencies can be found at Ready.gov.
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About CPS Energy
Established in 1860, CPS Energy is the nation’s largest public power, natural gas, and electric company, providing safe, reliable, and competitively-priced service to more than 884,811 electric and 366,709 natural gas customers in San Antonio and portions of seven adjoining counties. Our customers’ combined energy bills rank among the lowest of the nation’s 20 largest cities – while generating $8 billion in revenue for the City of San Antonio for more than seven decades. As a trusted and strong community partner, we continuously focus on job creation, economic development, and educational investment. True to our People First philosophy, we are powered by our skilled workforce, whose commitment to the community is demonstrated through our employees’ volunteerism in giving back to our city and programs aimed at bringing value to our customers. CPS Energy is among the top public power wind energy buyers in the nation and number one in Texas for solar generation.
