January 8, 2010
Energy Demand in Austin Sets Winter Record

Customer demand for electricity from Austin Energy set a new winter peak demand record this morning (Jan 8) between 7:00-8:00 a.m. at 1,947 megawatts (MW) with a temperature of 24 degrees.

During that hour, demand for electricity in Austin peaked at a higher level than ever before during a winter month (Dec-Feb) in Austin.

The previous record was 1,877 (MW) set in December 2008.

Winter peaks are lower than those during summer. A hot summer day in Austin with temperatures in the high 90s will see usage peak at 2,200-2,400 MW. This to say that Austin Energy has plenty of generation capacity to meet winter demand, even during very cold temperatures.

Texas also set a new winter peak demand record today. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), grid operator for most of the state, saw demand peak at 55,856 (preliminary number) megawatts (MW) during 7-8 a.m. today, exceeding the old record by almost 5,500 MW.

Learn 10 ways to cute winter heating use.