Texas Heatwave to Continue Testing Power Grid This Week – Reuters

This week’s heatwave is putting pressure on the Texas power system, with record monthly demand anticipated for Tuesday. Following a slightly cooler day on Monday, energy usage did not reach the new highs previously expected.

On Friday, outages at power plants led to a surge in prices, surpassing $4,000 per megawatt hour (MWh), prompting the grid operator to urge consumers to conserve energy. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages the grid for most of the state, reported that conditions were stable as Tuesday began.

Forecasts indicated that Houston, Texas’ largest city, would see temperatures peak at 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 Celsius) on Tuesday, easing to the low to mid-90s for the remainder of the week. This contrasts with the average high of 86 degrees for this time of year. On Monday, temperatures in Houston only reached 93 degrees, falling short of prior predictions.

The extreme heat is reminiscent of the severe February freeze in 2021, which left millions without power, water, and heat for days during a crisis that highlighted ERCOT’s struggles to manage the grid after significant generation was lost.

ERCOT anticipated that demand would hit 71,523 megawatts (MW) on Tuesday, surpassing the previous monthly record of 70,703 MW set on May 9. The all-time peak demand of 74,820 MW occurred in August 2019. On average, one megawatt can power approximately 1,000 homes, but during a scorching summer day in Texas, it can only support about 200 homes.

In a report issued Monday, ERCOT projected that ongoing economic growth would drive peak demand to 77,317 MW this summer. The grid is expected to have around 91,392 MW of power resources available to meet this demand.

The price for next-day electricity at the ERCOT North hub, which includes Dallas, decreased to $79 per MWh for Tuesday, down from an 11-month high of $246 for Monday.