The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is asking Texans to reduce electric use as much as possible through Friday, June 18. A significant number of forced generation outages combined with potential record electric use for the month of June have resulted in tight grid conditions.
ERCOT says today's peak load forecast may exceed 73,000 MW. The peak demand record for June is 69,123 MW set on June 27, 2018 between 4 and 5 p.m.
Generator owners have reported approximately 11,000 MW of generation is on forced outage for repairs. Of that, approximately 8,000 MW is thermal and the rest is intermittent resources. According to the summer Seasonal Assessment of Resource Adequacy, a typical range of thermal generation outages on hot summer days is around 3,600 MW. One MW typically powers around 200 homes on a summer day.
According to generation owners, the number of outages should decrease throughout the week.
Wind output for today is expected to be 3,500 to 6,000 MW between 3 and 9 p.m. This is roughly 1,500 MW lower than what is typically available for peak conditions. Wind output is expected to increase as the week goes on.
TIPS FOR REDUCING ELECTRICITY USE
- Set your thermostat to 78 degrees or higher. Every degree of cooling increases your energy use by 6 to 8 percent.
- Turn off lights and pool pumps, and avoid using large appliances, such as ovens, washing machines and dryers.
- Turn off and unplug any electrical devices, including computers, printers, televisions, etc., if possible.
