A map of Michigan power outage severity, just in time for spring storms

Spring has arrived in Detroit, bringing more daylight, green leaves, and — more than likely — wild weather and power outages. These blackouts will last longer for people in Michigan than in surrounding states with similar weather, if history is any guide.

A new dataset published in Nature tracks the duration of electricity outages at the county level across the entire country starting in 2014. The data are gathered every 15 minutes to get an accurate count of how long people are left in the dark.

Data wrangler Forest Gregg , who has tracked power outages in Michigan, mapped this data from 2021 through 2023 to show how Michigan power companies compare to each other and to utilities in neighboring states.

Cass County, where Indiana Michigan Power Co. is the largest utility provider, had the longest outages at an average of 9.6 days per customer each year over those three years. Alcona and Huron counties also left customers without power for an average of more than five days. The main power companies responsible for the electricity there are Consumers Energy Co. and DTE Energy Co., respectively. All three counties have other, smaller electric providers that serve some customers.

Almost everyone who lives in Michigan’s most populous county, Wayne County, relies on DTE for electricity. Outages here lasted an average of 3.4 days. The average statewide is much lower, at 1.8 days, but Michigan doesn’t stack up well against other states. Only two other states, Louisiana and Maine, have more days without power.

Data showing that Michigan’s investor-owned utilities leave their customers to deal with more and longer power outages have long been publicly available. Advocates, and more recently the state attorney general , point to that data when trying to push back against the utilities’ rate hike requests. DTE and Consumers Energy have passed along healthy portions of these rate hikes to their shareholders instead of investing in repairing or adding new infrastructure to their power grids that can make outages less likely.

The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) is responsible for regulating these utilities and deciding on rates they can charge customers. Commission spokesperson Matt Helms acknowledged the reliability problem.

“The MPSC shares customers’ concerns about power outages in Michigan, which happen too frequently and last too long,” Helms told Outlier Media. “We’re using every tool we have to help understand what’s driving the outages, and what steps to take to improve the grid’s performance.”

A third-party audit of DTE’s and Consumers Energy’s performance is expected this summer. After that report, the MPSC will consider whether it should fine utilities for repeated and lengthy outages. The commission recently approved a slightly higher credit of $35 a day for customers dealing with power outages. It also approved a pilot program for Consumers Energy to move a small number of power lines underground to better understand the costs and benefits.

In response to pressure from regulators, both DTE and Consumers Energy are making some moves toward improving reliability. DTE recently announced it is installing detectors on power lines that will help pinpoint where outages are coming from. Consumers Energy said it will swap in more than 1,000 longer-lasting iron utility poles to replace wooden ones.

Both utilities are asking for more money from ratepayers to make these upgrades. The MPSC approved a $92 million rate hike for Consumers Energy in March, though regulators did give the company less than the $216 million it initially requested. DTE has asked the commission to approve an approximately $456 million rate hike for its electric customers this year.

Customers who want to weigh in on reliability issues or rate hikes can give public comment at MPSC meetings , file a complaint , or write a letter to regulators .

A map of Michigan power outage severity, just in time for spring storms · Outlier Media