ERCOT urges Texans to conserve power Monday amid concerns that demand could outstrip capacity

Officials with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas are asking Texans to conserve electricity from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, saying soaring temperatures statewide could result in demand for power that outstrips generation capacity.

The operator of the state’s power grid said in the conservation appeal issued late Sunday that “no system-wide outages are expected,” but the message also said ERCOT has issued a watch to grid managers for “a projected capacity shortage from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.”

It said it is “asking Texans and Texas businesses to voluntarily conserve electricity” during the six-hour period, when temperatures are expected to be in triple digits across the state, wind speeds are forecast to be low and demand for electricity is likely to hit record levels.

In the Austin area, temperatures are projected to reach 107 degrees Monday.

ERCOT said in the conservation appeal, sent about 9:30 p.m. to ERCOT participants and on the operator’s social media channels, that peak demand is expected to come in at 79,671 megawatts. That’s within 500 megawatts of the 80,168 megawatts of generation that ERCOT forecasts will be available during the anticipated tightest hour between 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

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ERCOT, the agency that oversees the state’s power grid, said demand could come dangerously close to outstripping supply on Monday.

“According to the (Public Utility Commission of Texas), ways to reduce electricity use during peak times include turning up your thermostat a degree or two, if comfortable, and postponing running major appliances or pool pumps during peak hours,” the agency said in its appeal.

ERCOT, which is overseen by the utility commission, also directed people to the utility commission’s website (https://www.puc.texas.gov/consumer/facts/Save.aspx) for more conservation tips.

The request marks the second time this year that ERCOT has asked Texans to cutback on power usage. The first came over a weekend in mid-May, when the agency appealed for conservation during peak hours because of unusually hot spring temperatures.

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That heatwave has largely continued throughout June and so far in July. The sweltering weather, combined with what has been booming statewide population growth in recent years, has triggered huge demand for electricity to cool homes and businesses.

Last Tuesday, peak electricity demand on the grid hit 77,460 megawatts, surpassing ERCOT’s peak summer forecast more than a month before officials expected it to occur. The agency had projected that peak demand would come on the afternoon of Aug. 10 and top out at 77,317 megawatts.

More:Changes to Texas’ power grid costing state hundreds of millions of dollars

One megawatt is enough to power about 200 homes on a hot day.

As they did in May, ERCOT officials characterized their request for voluntary cutbacks Monday as a standard part of their toolbox to manage the grid reliably.

Still, many Texans have been rattled by the appeals in the wake of the disastrous grid failure in February 2021, when prolonged blackouts during a severe winter storm resulted in 246 deaths across 77 counties, according to an official state tally, and billions of dollars in property damage.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texans asked to cutback on electricity usage Monday