I have purposefully not said we would have blackouts this summer, this winter, or the coming several years if we remain on the current Consumers Energy/MPSC “Net Zero” track. We will likely be much more like the UK than South Africa in our energy circumstances. The UK is much further down the Net Zero path than we are, but for the most part they have thus far avoided blackouts and load shedding. However, the UK has experienced rapidly rising electric prices and a tenuous grid which have had a de-industrializing effect on the UK. It costs more to have solar and wind as baseload, and this is likely to get worse with decreased government subsidy. Shortfalls would likely be addressed by expensive electric energy imports from outside our region, generally avoiding blackouts but incurring significant cost. That is the most likely course we are on during the coming 5 years if we remain bridled to the Net Zero agenda by the Consumers Energy/MPSC duo. Only longer term would we likely find ourselves in the South African energy mess, without enough electric supply and unable to import sufficient to avoid load shedding or blackouts. MISO and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy project that South African energy scenario will hit us around 2032 if we keep with our current direction.
Ottawa County townships need to pursue what is described here to avoid this likely scenario.