Emergency Grid Order Proves Wind and Solar Cannot Keep the Lights On
The Department of Energy has issued an emergency order directing power plants across a 17-state region to increase electricity production as extreme summer demand threatens grid reliability.
The order specifically warns of “potential low output from wind and other variable energy resources” and “the potential for lower wind and solar” when electricity demand is at its highest.
In other words, when Americans need power most, weather-dependent energy cannot be counted on to deliver it.
“Every politician and eco-leftist who cheered when a dependable coal or natural gas plant shut down should feel ashamed for the dangerous energy situation they helped create,” said Power The Future Founder and Executive Director Daniel Turner. “Families should never face the threat of blackouts because political leaders valued green promises more than a reliable electric grid.”
Power The Future warned about this exact scenario in *The Looming American Electricity Affordability Crisis*. Retiring dependable coal and natural gas plants and replacing them with intermittent wind and solar leaves Americans with a grid that is more expensive, more fragile and less capable of meeting peak demand.
DOE’s emergency order should be a wake-up call: America needs more reliable, dispatchable power—not more promises that depend on the weather.
July 28, 2026