ORNL provides first comprehensive analysis of U.S. power outage costs
Previous studies focused on impacts regarding a singular variable. This is the first comprehensive analysis to gauge the cost of unreliable electricity across all geographic scales and customer types.
The core of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) study reveals a staggering trend: the cost of power outages to U.S. customers is skyrocketing. Between 2018 and 2024, the average annual cost topped $67 billion. By 2024 alone, that figure was $121 billion.
Key data points for Tennesseans
- Regional Concentration: The highest costs per customer are concentrated in the Southeast, likely due to weather events.
- Business impact: Commercial and industrial customers saw a nationwide average loss of $6,031 per outage in 2024. In Tennessee specifically, commercial and industrial customers (non-residential) saw over $4,000 in costs per outage.
- Residential impact: Tennessee’s residential cost per customer per outage was between $0–$800, with the state’s total residential cost ranging from $137–$189 million.
- Rising frequency: The number of major outages nationwide (defined as affecting 30,000+ customers or 15% of a county) jumped 29% in seven years.
The TASTI-GRID tool
Having this research provides a vital benchmark for future strategic power grid decisions.
ORNL and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Grid Deployment Office have developed TASTI-GRID. This interactive tool enables users to better understand the current state of the grid and inform data-driven resilience investments.
“When state energy officials can see the dollars and cents of outages in their particular areas, they can make better choices,” said ORNL lead researcher Narayan Bhusal. “This provides them even more information to meet their goal of striking the best balance between keeping rates affordable and having a reliable system. When a utility prioritizes the right high-value grid investments, its revenue will increase, customers will have shorter and fewer outages, and business customers will generate more income.”
From analysis to action
While the national data does present aging grid concerns, Tennessee is already taking action to help mitigate risks.
We recently highlighted this in our coverage of the ORNL and EPB partnership to derisk the future of the American power grid. Tennessee is modernizing the grid by utilizing ORNL’s GRID-C facility to develop microgrid technology for use in EPB’s local utility network.
Future iterations of the TASTI-GRID tool will explore more granular grid impacts, such as the cost implications of small but frequent outages, outage length effects, and the total price of specific weather events over a long period.
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