Texas power demand hits monthly record in heatwave

div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpReuters – The Texas power grid said Tuesday that it has sufficient resources to meet demand this week as consumers crank up their air conditioners to escape unseasonably hot weather after usage soared to a monthly record on Monday.p

pThe Electric Reliability Council of Texas ERCOT, which operates the grid for most of the state, said demand rose to 70,703 megawatts MW on Monday, breaking the prior monthly record of 67,271 MW set in May 2018.pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

pThat is surprising since temperatures in Houston, the biggest city in Texas, hit just 88 degrees Fahrenheit 31.1 Celsius on Monday, only a few degrees over the citys normal high of 85 F for this time of year, according to AccuWeather.p

pIt was, however, much hotter elsewhere in the state, including San Antonio, the states second biggest city, where the mercury reached 101 F on Monday. The normal high in San Antonio is about 86 F at this time of year.p

pExtreme weather reminds Texans of the February freeze in 2021 that left millions without power, water and heat for days during a deadly storm as ERCOT scrambled to prevent a grid collapse after an unusually large amount of generation was shut.p

pLooking ahead, ERCOT forecast demand would reach 70,758 MW on May 16, topping Monday‘s high but remaining well below the grid’s alltime peak of 74,820 MW in August 2019.p

pOne megawatt can power around 1,000 U.S. homes on a typical day, but only about 200 homes on a hot summer day in Texas.p

pAccuWeather forecast high temperatures in Houston would reach the low to mid 90s every day from May 1024.p

pDespite high demand, nextday prices at the ERCOT North hub, which includes Dallas, fell to 75 per megawatt hour for Tuesday from 88 for Monday and a sixmonth high of 164 for Friday.p

p

pp Reporting by Scott DiSavino Editing by Aurora Ellisp

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