Dive Brief:
- The Texas power grid is bracing for record peak demand next winter next week as a cold snap is expected to boost heating consumption. Monday morning, a new record of the highest peak in the winter system is possible, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas reports (ERCOT) warned Thursday.
- The grid operator also sent a message to market participants on Monday, warning the generators to “prepare to save fuel to best serve peak loads,” ERCOT of any known or anticipated fuel restrictions. “
- ERCOTs The current record of peak winter demand is 65,915 MW, which was achieved in January 2018. The grid operator published a Seasonal Assessment of Resource Adequacy (SARA) report in November that predicts peak winter demand of 57,699 MW this season.
Dive insight:
The November SARA report identified nearly 83,000 MW of resource capacity that ERCOT expected to be available to meet the winter peak. But Texas is experiencing a string of cold temperatures expected to culminate next week, and the grid operator wants to be prepared.
“This statewide weather system is expected to present Texas with the coldest weather we have seen in decades,” ERCOT president and CEO Bill Magness said in a statement. “With temperatures falling rapidly, we are already seeing high electrical consumption and are anticipating record-breaking demand in the ERCOT region.”
Higher peak demand could increase electricity prices in Texas. When the state hit the record peak winter demand in January 2018, prices briefly rose above $ 2,200 / MWh.
ERCOT’s message to market participants stated that the grid operator expects the temperature to remain 32F or below Thursday to Monday. Generators were asked to review fuel stocks, notify ERCOT “of any known or anticipated fuel limitations”, “identify planned outages and” consider postponing maintenance or returning early from a failure. “
Economic operators were also asked to review and implement winterization procedures and to notify ERCOT of “any changes or circumstances that may affect the reliability of the system”.
ERCOT also said it is working with transmission operators to “minimize transmission disruptions that could reduce generation availability or otherwise affect the system’s ability to meet demand.”
The Texas Public Utility Commission (PUCT) has issued a statement saying it “has been working closely with government agencies, ERCOT and other energy industry organizations to prepare for adequate resources in the coming days.”
“The declining temperatures predicted for the next few days will place significant demand on the ERCOT grid,” said PUCT Chairman DeAnn Walker. “The response of the live electrical system will, as always, require significant coordination.”
An Oncor Electric spokesperson said the state’s largest utility company monitors weather conditions and has resources and personnel to handle any outages. “Right now, statewide generators are generating enough power to meet demand,” Kerri Dunn, the utility’s representative, said in an email.
ERCOT is a typical summer peak system, powered by the use of air conditioning. The system’s peak demand of 74,820 MW was reached in August 2019.