Sharjah24 - Reuters: Power demand in Texas is set to break the all-time record this week, far ahead of the hottest days of summer, testing of the resilience of the state's power grid after issues earlier this year and last year's days-long blackout during a deep freeze.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates the grid for most of the state, expects power demand to surge to an all-time record by Tuesday - surpassing levels reached in August of 2019.
Usage is expected to reach 75,195 megawatts (MW) on June 7 due to anticipated high heat that exceeds typical levels for this time of year. ERCOT, which serves more than 26 million Texas customers covering about 90% of the state's power demand, said it has enough resources available to meet forecast demand.
"ERCOT weather-adjusted loads have been increasing rapidly since mid-2021," said Morris Greenberg, senior manager North American power analysis at S&P Global Commodity Insights.
AccuWeather is forecasting high temperatures in Houston this week - into the upper 90s Fahrenheit, higher than normal - and will lead to businesses and residents boosting power usage as they crank up air conditioners.
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