Grid Apocalypse Hits Carolinas: 360 Substations Down

It Could Take “Months” for Power Restoration

Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC), representing a district in the western portion of the state battered by Hurricane Helene, released a press release Sunday detailing the infrastructure devastation.

The destructive path of #Helene has left extensive damage to @DukeEnergy infrastructure in the #NC mountains and Upstate #SC . We believe around 50% of remaining outages in these areas will require significant replacement and rebuilding of poles, lines and substation equipment. pic.twitter.com/b7eANjX0ta

— Jeff Brooks (@DE_JeffB) September 30, 2024

Edwards said power outages remain widespread in Western North Carolina as of Sunday. Fast-forward to Wednesday morning, Poweroutage.US data shows more than 400,000 residents are without power in the region. 

He explained that 360 power substations “are out,” indicating that “many of these substations were completely flooded, and Duke Energy is unable to assess the damage until the flooding has lowered, the water has been pumped out, and the equipment is thoroughly dried.”

What’s piqued our interest is that the powering up America theme to power AI data centers and other electrification trends, such as EVs and onshoring manufacturing (as outlined in “The Next AI Trade”), has led to shortages and price increases in the transformer market.

“Distribution transformers are a bedrock component of our energy infrastructure,” National Renewable Energy Laboratory researcher Killian McKenna said, who was recently quoted by PV Magazine.

McKenna pointed out, “But utilities needing to add or replace them are currently facing high prices and long wait times due to supply chain shortages. This has the potential to affect energy accessibility, reliability, affordability—everything.”

Other reasons for the transformer shortages besides power grid upgrades include raw material sourcing problems, pandemic-related supply chain woes and backlogs, labor constraints, shipping issues, and geopolitical tensions.

Given all of this, Jesse D. Jenkins, an assistant professor and macro-energy systems engineering and policy expert at Princeton University, responded to the dire situation of a grid apocalypse playing out in the Southeast US:

“This is devastating. We do NOT have 360 substations worth of transformers and other electrical equipment sitting in stockpiles waiting to be deployed. It could take a very long time to restore power to everyone. Are we facing a Hurricane Maria-type impact on grid infrastructure?” 

This is devastating. We do NOT have 360 substations worth of transformers and other electrical equipment sitting in stockpiles waiting to be deployed. It could take a very long time to restore power to everyone. Are we facing a Hurricane Maria-type impact on grid infrastructure? https://t.co/k0Wli7XlEf

— Jesse D. Jenkins (@JesseJenkins) September 30, 2024

Making matters worse for residents of North Carolina, some X users are pointing out the Biden-Harris administration supplied transformers to Ukraine. It’s unclear if these transformers were drained for US stockpiles. Meanwhile, others note that Ukraine uses a different electrical system than the US.

We do not have this equipment readily available because we have shipped large quantities of transformers and other electrical equipment to Ukraine. Both our military and non-military support for Ukraine has left us less prepared for domestic disasters like Hurricane Helene: https://t.co/cOct3JkcVU pic.twitter.com/laVtNIuCoa

— Dan Caldwell 🇺🇸 (@dandcaldwell) October 1, 2024

What’s not questionable is this: Earlier this year, US ambassador to Kyiv Bridget Brink jumped for joy on X, indicating United States Agency for International Development delivered “50 voltage transformers, 9 current transformers, & 80 isolators.” 

You know, just Washington elites have been prioritizing Ukraine’s power grid over the US’ fragile grid.

Last week we provided through @USAID 50 voltage transformers, 9 current transformers, & 80 isolators to Kharkiv’s energy distribution system operator to help energy workers undertake urgent repairs to Kharkiv’s electrical grid damaged by Russia’s missile and drone attacks. pic.twitter.com/C8VmGLuliD

— Ambassador Bridget A. Brink (@USAmbKyiv) May 21, 2024

Nathaniel Horadam, a managing consultant and automated vehicle specialist with the Atlanta-based nonprofit Center for Transportation and the Environment, wrote on X, “ It’s Hard to express how insane this is. With ongoing supply chain challenges facing switchgear and transformers, this could take many months to resolve.”

“There’s no excess capacity to quickly replace substation infrastructure. Lower priority sites could literally take years,” Horadam warned.

Possibly summed up here…

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