By Maura Giles
Electricity plays an essential role in everyday life.
It powers our homes, offices, hospitals, and schools. We depend on it to keep us warm in the winter (and cool in the summer), charge our phones, and binge our favorite TV shows. If the power goes out, even briefly, our lives can be disrupted.
The system that delivers your electricity is often described as the most complex machine in the world, and it’s known as the electric grid.
What makes it so complex? We all use different amounts of electricity throughout the day, so the supply and demand for electricity is constantly changing. We typically use more electricity in the mornings when we start our days, and in the evenings when we cook dinner and use appliances. Severe weather and other factors also impact how much electricity we need.
The challenge for electric providers is to plan for, produce, and purchase enough electricity so it’s available exactly when we need it. Too much or too little electricity in 1 place can cause problems. To make sure the whole system stays balanced, the electric grid must adjust in real-time to changes and unforeseen events.
At its core, the electric grid is a network of power lines, transformers, substations, and other infrastructure that spans the entire country. But it’s not just a singular system. It’s divided into 3 major interconnected grids: the Eastern Interconnection, the Western Interconnection, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. These grids operate independently but are linked to allow electricity to be transferred between regions when backup support is required.
Within the 3 regions, 7 balancing authorities known as independent system operators or regional transmission organizations monitor the grid, signaling to power plants when more electricity is needed to maintain a balanced electrical flow. ISOs and RTOs are like traffic controllers for electricity.
The journey of electricity begins at power plants. Power plants can be thought of as factories that make electricity using various energy sources, such as natural gas, solar, wind and nuclear energy. Across the United States, more than 11,000 power plants deliver electricity to the grid.
United Electric Co-op receives power from the Bonneville Power Administration. We work closely with BPA to provide electricity at the lowest cost possible to our members.
To get the electricity from power plants to you, we need a transportation system.
High-voltage transmission lines act as the highways for electricity, transporting power over long distances. These lines are supported by massive towers and travel through vast landscapes, connecting power plants to electric substations.
Substations are like pit stops along the highway, where the voltage of electricity is adjusted. They play a crucial role in managing power flow and ensuring electricity is safe for use in homes and businesses.
Once the electricity is reduced to the proper voltage, it travels through distribution power lines, commonly seen on the side of the road. Distribution lines carry electricity from substations to homes, schools, and businesses. Distribution transformers, which look like metal buckets on the tops of power poles or large green boxes on the ground, further reduce the voltage to levels suitable for household appliances and electronic devices.
After traveling through transformers, electricity reaches you— to power everyday life. From the time it’s created to the time it’s used, electricity travels great distances to be available at the flip of a switch. The electric grid is our nation’s most complex machine— and 1 of our nation’s greatest achievements.