The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) announced Wednesday it expects record electric use this summer and grid conditions similar to summer 2019. The company says it's taking steps to maintain the reliability of the grid during possible tight conditions.
ERCOT manages the flow of electric power to more than 26 million Texas customers, which represents about 90% of the state's electric load.
“ERCOT has added new electric supply resources, and strong economic growth continues to push up demand in ERCOT,” said ERCOT President and CEO Bill Magness in a press release. “We expect grid operations to be very similar to last summer.”
A press release from ERCOT shows total resource capacity for the upcoming summer season is expected to be 82,417 MW. The preliminary summer SARA report includes a 76,696 MW summer peak load forecast based on normal summer peak weather conditions from 2004 – 2018.
This week, ERCOT also announced they will provide weekly updates regarding load pattern changes due to COVID-19.
"The overall load reduction for the ERCOT region has leveled off over the past two weeks," said ERCOT Manager of Load Forecasting and Analysis Calvin Opheim in a press release. "Based on the data analyzed from the weeks of March 22 and 29, weekly energy use is down by approximately two percent."
In addition, ERCOT said the morning load has remained consistently lower between the hours of 6 and 10 a.m.
Any changes to the summer peak load forecast will be announced in mid-May, when ERCOT releases its final summer Seasonal Assessment of Resource Adequacy and the Capacity, Demand and Reserves Report.
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