The Intelligent Energy Association analyzed the evolution of electricity consumption and production, according to Transelectrica data at the level of Romania in 2024 compared to 2023, an approach that revealed the real level of pressure placed by the severe heat wave on the National Energy System. The differences are impressive and clearly reveal a critical limit of the network’s ability to cope without interventions in the consumption management strategy if the episodes of drought and extreme temperatures continue for a longer period or if they return during the summer. High risks include power outages that can result in massive loss of life and high property damage.
According to the analysis carried out by Intelligent Energy Association, electricity consumption increased by 45% compared to the same day in the previous year. This sharp increase in consumption was largely supported by electricity imports, which saw a spectacular increase of 1400%, perhaps the most worrying calculation revealed by the analysis.
To cope with this increased demand, Romania once again resorted to security resources to save the energy situation. Coal-fired power generation rose 125 percent year-on-year, while gas-fired power generation saw a 45 percent increase. Nuclear power also made a significant contribution, with output up 66% on the same day last year.
However, the production of wind energy decreased dramatically, being 59% lower compared to July 14, 2023, and hydro energy registered a decrease of 5%, Dumitru Chisăliță, the president of AEI, showed in his analysis.
The effects were not slow to appear. The heatwave is already putting pressure on the power grid
Although so far the incidents have been classified as minor, there have been enough blackouts and breakdowns in the last week that have cemented the need for major investments in the energy infrastructure. According to a material produced by Știrile Pro TV, at the beginning of the week in various districts of Sector 3 of the capital there were numerous situations in which the electrical networks overheated and failed. The same source reported blackouts that also stopped activity at the terraces and restaurants in Tomis Port in Constanța. For more than an hour, employees could not use the cash registers or take orders, although the restaurants were full of people, the source said.
Voltage drops occur mostly in densely populated urban and regional areas, where the demand for electricity increases sharply on hot days. For example, only in Bucharest, the consumption on Friday afternoon exceeded 1000 MW, being approximately 20-25% above the average of the summer season. In Ilfov county, electricity consumption is also high, exceeding the cumulative values of the cities of Timișoara and Arad.
“It increases consumption a lot because everyone is trying to cool down somehow. On the other hand, the heat can also cause problems for the distribution infrastructure. We must expect that such phenomena will increase in intensity in the coming years due to climate change, and for this, investments must be made in electricity networks”, Otilia Nuțu, an energy expert, pointed out for Pro TV.
We already have a recent example of massive damage in Europe in June. Deadly effects of a national blackout, according to studies
In June, there was a huge blackout in Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and western Croatia. The incident lasted almost three hours and affected more than 2 million people. The four countries were left without power after a power line in Montenegro caught fire amid temperatures of 41 degrees Celsius. According to the Minister of Energy of Montenegro, Sasa Mujovic, the blackout would have occurred as a result of a sudden increase in energy consumption, due to the high temperature, as well as due to the heat itself.
Traffic light failures caused traffic jams in Bosnia’s capital, Sarajevo, and in the cities of Banja Luka and Mostar. Many residents of Podgorica were left without water as the pumps stopped working. Air conditioners stopped and refrigerated products were tampered with in stores and ambulance sirens blared in the Croatian coastal city of Split. Power outages can disrupt access to drinking water, food and essential health services. They can also have knock-on effects on communication and transport networks, according to a recent report by the NGO Climate Central, according to Reuters.
A 2023 study published in Environmental Science & Technology Journal by researchers from several universities in the United States and Canada showed that power outages during extreme heat waves have severe consequences for the medical system, leading to a significant increase in heat-related emergencies and putting pressure on health infrastructure. For example, during a heatwave event combined with a power outage, major cities such as Atlanta, Detroit, and Phoenix experienced a dramatic increase in emergency department (ED) visits.
In Atlanta, the rate of emergency room visits increased from 18 per 100,000 residents under normal conditions to nearly 3,000 per 100,000 residents during a power outage, meaning about 3 percent of the city’s population required medical care for heat-related ailments. In Phoenix, the situation was even worse, with an emergency room visit rate that rose from 18 to more than 56,000 per 100,000 residents, affecting more than 50 percent of the urban population.
These dramatic increases put enormous pressure on hospitals and medical resources, leading to overburdened emergency departments and rapid depletion of available medical staff and equipment. Hospital cooling systems are critical to maintaining a safe environment for patients, especially the vulnerable, such as the elderly and those with chronic conditions. Without electricity, hospitals rely on backup generators, which cannot always support all energy needs for long periods.
Also, the lack of air conditioning in personal homes due to a power outage increases the risk of heatstroke and other heat-related illnesses, forcing more people to seek medical care. In cities where the prevalence of air conditioning is low, the rate of mortality and morbidity is much higher compared to cities where air conditioning is more widespread, shows the study of American researchers.
In addition to increasing the number of emergency room visits, power outages also affect the response capacity of ambulance and medical transport services, as traffic lights and other urban infrastructure systems may become inoperable. This delays response time to medical emergencies and can worsen the condition of patients.
What can be done in the National Energy System to avoid a collapse
According to a material signed by the energy security expert Cosmin Păcuraru, the energy situation in Romania today is mostly caused by the faulty policies in Romania from the last 20 years, the lack of strategy in the energy field. He pointed out that we have an energy market declared free, but which in fact is totally regulated, we have suppliers who naturally look for new consumers, but in fact they drive away the existing ones, and that we have capped prices declared for social purposes, but in in fact they are larger than they should normally be.
“Before the implementation of energy strategies, energy efficiency, SMR promotion, hydrogen, etc., Romania is obliged to define the guidelines that the different sectorial strategies will subsequently implement. In the absence of these directive lines, the strategies, even seriously realized, are doomed to failure”, the expert pointed out.
In order to ensure Romania’s social, energy and environmental balance, he emphasized that a viable long-term strategy must respond to climate change and prevent other future climate changes. A basic element in this endeavor is the definition of the Romanian economic model in the context of the European Union for the years 2040-2050, which will determine the demand for energy, the profile of energy needs and the degree of economic affordability.
Another critical aspect is the preparation of the human resource for a possible reconfiguration of the energy strategy to face any challenges imposed by the climate. People need to be aware that current resources such as crude oil and natural gas are depleting and new energy projects need to be adopted. Also, Cosmin Păcuraru insisted, sectoral interconnectivity, preparation for climate change and hydrotechnical planning are vital to prevent floods and ensure water in dry periods, while also using water energy to produce electricity.
In addition, an efficient and resilient consumption mix must be developed that maximizes energy efficiency at the consumer level and promotes self-production of energy from locally available resources. The security energy mix must be rethought to include fuel storage and interchangeability solutions, necessary techniques and technologies, and grid optimization for various forms of energy. The definition of the New Model of the Romanian Energy System must be based on the available resources, the efficiency of processes and the use of new technologies for heating, hot water and air conditioning, the expert concluded.
Source: ziare.com
