As crews scramble across Florida to repair the damage to the power grid caused by Hurricane Ian, many are concerned about supplies. Crews are faced with not only repairing the damage caused by the high winds and flooding but also obtaining the needed supplies to carry out the tasks.
National Transformer Shortage
Florida Power & Light maintains a stockpile of wire, poles, and generators but the supply chain has faced problems in the last two years which caused a depletion in goods. Nationally there is a shortage of transformers that are used to take electricity via high voltage lines. The transformers then reduce the levels, so they are acceptable for homes and businesses.
Joy Ditto who is the CEO and president of the American Public Power Association stated the following in an interview about the transformer shortage, “It’s a critical component to the electrical grid that has been in scarce supply for a number of months now. We started to recognize it as a national concern in late winter, early spring, and the situation is getting worse.”
Supply Chain Problems
Prior to the Covid19 pandemic, it would take three months for a transformer to arrive after being ordered but now it takes more than a year. The limited supply of transformers is causing many companies to face a serious shortage.
Transformer Manufacturers
Currently, there about around half a dozen manufacturers of transformers in the United States but they are struggling to cope with labor and material shortages. The specialty steel used in the manufacture of the transformers is supplied by only a single U.S. manufacturer. The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and others have reached out to the U.S. Energy Department requesting that they lift the 2016 efficiency standard because they believe it is partially to blame for the steel shortage. However, the department has not agreed.
At this time, utility companies are prioritizing those impacted by Hurricane Ian in an effort to restore power to the millions impacted.
