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Friday, 16 March, 2001, 15:05 GMT
California faces more power cuts
![]() California faces more power cuts this summer
California faces further power cuts in the summer despite desperate efforts to secure a stable supply of energy to the state.
Power blackouts "appear inevitable" and could also spill over into other Western states, according to President George W. Bush's administration.
Californians were plunged into another emergency situation this week after a power alert by the state's energy agency - the California Independent System Operator. The agency declared the alert after losing crucial electricity imports from the Pacific Northwest. A solution? The state, which has already suffered three blackouts and numerous "brownouts" since June, is battling to resolve its energy problems. To find a long-term solution, the Californian governor Gray Davis is negotiating to purchase transmission lines from three of the state's major utilities. In exchange, the utilities would sell electricity to the state below market rates for 10 years. The state is also turning to conservation and has passed a new law to curb night-time use of energy by businesses. Companies that don't comply face up to $1,000 in fines. A dark summer Governor Davis believes that the new law would avoid summer blackouts. However, the Bush administration does not share his optimism.
However, the administration is still hoping that other states won't be affected and Mr Abraham has discussed the possibility of obtaining additional power from Mexico. California's energy crunch California's shortage of power stems from deregulation of the state's energy market in 1996, which barred utilities from passing on higher prices for wholesale electricity to consumers.
Californian law-makers have pleaded for price controls on wholesale electricity, but the Bush administration, which is against market regulations - and is close to the energy industry - remains deeply opposed to this. "Any action we take must either help increase supply or reduce demand... Price caps will not increase or reduce demand," said Mr Abraham at the Senate hearing.
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