“We ask Texans to conserve energy when they can by setting their thermostats to 78 degrees or higher and to avoid using large appliances (such as dishwashers, washers, and dryers) during peak hours between 3pm and 8pm during the weekend., Interim CEO Brad Jones said in the statement.
The call comes as record temperatures across much of the southern US this weekend are expected to exacerbate a worsening drought.
From Phoenix to Amarillo, Texas, record temperatures are expected to hit three figures, with some parts of Texas having a chance to break daily records over the next seven days.
Now the heat is testing the Texas power grid.
On Wednesday, ERCOT asked power plants to postpone outages and return from outages already in progress “to serve Texas this weekend.”
Saturday temperatures in the 1990s across Texas were -10 to 15 degrees above average, according to CNN meteorologists. Temperatures are expected to rise from the mid-1990s to 100 degrees Celsius on Sunday, with most of central and western Texas reaching 100 to 105 degrees — roughly 10 to 15 degrees above average.
According to a statement from the organization, ERCOT is responsible for about 90% of the state’s electrical load.
Hot off-season weather is driving record demand across the state, the statement said.
“Explorer. Unapologetic entrepreneur. Alcohol fanatic. Certified writer. Wannabe tv evangelist. Twitter fanatic. Student. Web scholar. Travel buff.”
