CPS Energy customers’ electricity demand reached an all-time high on Monday, four days after Texas’ grid operator reported record-high demand across the entire state.
Driven by sweltering triple-digit temperatures, CPS Energy’s load reached 5,080 megawatts on Monday, beating a record of 5,017 megawatts set on Aug. 12, 2016, according to a tweet by CPS Energy Chief Operating Officer Cris Eugster.
Set @cpsenergy peak load record of 5080 MW yesterday exceeding prior record of 5017 MW set on Aug 12, 2016. Our demand side programs & conservation kept it close! Also as @joshdr83 noted, @ERCOT_ISO wind actuals (green line) much stronger than forecast, helping supply side! pic.twitter.com/d8ZkFPBInv
— Cris Eugster (@Cris_Eugster) July 24, 2018
The new peak in San Antonio’s electricity demand came after two days of record-breaking high temperatures, according to National Weather Service data.
Monday’s high was 105 degrees, beating a previous record of 103 degrees set on July 23, 1994. Sunday’s record high was 103 degrees, exceeding 102-degree highs in 2009 and 2006.
Eugster credited CPS Energy’s conservation and demand-response efforts, such as automatically adjusting participating customers’ thermostats, for helping keep demand in check.
Greater-than-expected performance by Texas wind farms also helped on the supply side, he said, sharing a graph from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the state’s grid operator.
ERCOT reported an all-time demand record of 73,259 megawatts on July 19, the second day in a row it hit an all-time record.
ERCOT set a new all-time system-wide peak demand record two hours in a row this afternoon, topping out at 73,259 MW between 4 and 5 p.m. This is the first time ERCOT peak demand has exceeded 73,000 MW in the ERCOT region. View actual loads: https://t.co/PsQRlROs1l pic.twitter.com/oAhqugZIRV
— ERCOT (@ERCOT_ISO) July 19, 2018
Despite the new high points of demand, ERCOT data show that the grid has had enough generation capacity from power plants, wind, and solar resources across the state to continue operating under normal conditions without calling for emergency conservation.
