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A Fortune investigation reveals that not only is California suffering from a generator shortage, "but overloaded power lines pose a much greater risk of blowing the fuses of the national economy." The story reveals the results of a study finding that "since 1975, annual utility investments in the U.S. power transmission system have fallen by more than half, to about $2 billion, ... [and] meanwhile, sales of power loaded onto the lines have risen more than 100-fold since mid-decade." The report details how "operators of the grid are forced to run it ever closer to its limits" and points to a number of examples of "gridwide voltage drop" or mysterious slowing. The investigation explains how "peak-time line congestion pushes wholesale power prices sky-high." The author warns that this trend "is the main threat to the system nationwide."

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