ERCOT: Power grid able to meet demand Thursday, avoiding emergency operations
With North Texas breaking record-high temperatures Thursday, ERCOT asked Texans to conserve energy.
The operator of the Texas power grid issued a Conservation Appeal for Aug. 24 from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. but said conditions would return to normal after that.
ERCOT said the high temperatures, high demand and lower-than-normal wind generation Thursday led to tight grid conditions.
"[Wind generation] not going to dip as low as it has been, but it's only going to get to about 6-thousand watts, which is lower than what we have historically experienced throughout the tight days of this summer," said ERCOT CEO Pablo Vegas.
A Conservation Appeal does not mean that the grid is experiencing emergency conditions right now. ERCOT says the forecast showed a "high potential to enter emergency operations this evening."
Grid conditions were the tightest between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
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ERCOT, the Texas power grid operator, has issued Voluntary Conservation Notices three times so far this summer amid record demand.
ERCOT says it used reserve power and brought more generation online to prepare for the tight conditions.
The grid operator asked all city and county offices to implement programs to reduce their energy use.
The emergency condition declaration was avoided. But if it had been activated, some businesses and small industrial plants would have been asked to reduce the amount of electricity they use.
Tapping into power grids outside of ERCOT is possible, but the PUC was told the closest available options are also facing tight conditions.
This is the fourth time this summer that ERCOT has asked Texas to conserve energy.