Extreme Heat Drives Texas Power Demand to Another Record

Power consumption rose to all-time high of 82,698 megawatts on Tuesday afternoon, grid data compiled by Bloomberg show. That’s the ninth record in just three weeks.

So far, robust power supplies from wind and solar farms are helping to stabilize the grid and keeping power prices relatively low. Wind and solar generation accounted for about 35% of the supply during Tuesday’s peak, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or Ercot, as the grid operator is known.

The figures are based on real-time energy usage updated by Ercot every five minutes. The grid operator, though, determines records based on hourly levels. The hourly record was set on Monday at 81,911 megawatts, according to preliminary data.

Renewable power is helping to save the grid from the kind of strain that’s caused blackouts in the past, with the state’s expanding economy and population also driving growth for electricity use in recent years. The grid last spiraled into widespread blackouts during a February 2021 winter storm.