Please see the below release from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) asking Texans and Texas businesses to voluntarily conserve electricity, Wednesday, July 13 between 2-9 p.m. Oncor is echoing this appeal for conservation in its role as the transmission and distribution company, or the poles and wires company that delivers electricity to many Texans. It does not own or operate power generation facilities, or sell, purchase or offer electricity retail services. Oncor will continue to follow direction from ERCOT.

Customers can help by taking the following conservation steps:

·         Turn off any unnecessary lights and equipment.

·         Turn thermostat up 2 to 3 degrees.

·         Set programmable thermostats to higher temperatures when no one is home.

·         Use fans to feel 4 to 6 degrees cooler.

·         Limit use of large appliances (i.e., dishwasher, washer, dryer, etc.).

·         If you cook indoors, use a microwave or slow cooker.

·         Close blinds and drapes during late afternoon.

·         Schedule pool pumps to run in the early morning or overnight hours.

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Appeal Effective Wednesday, July 13, 2022

AUSTIN, TX, July 13, 2022 – As extreme hot weather continues driving record power demand across Texas, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is issuing a Conservation Appeal for Wednesday, July 13 between 2-9 p.m.  ERCOT is asking Texans and businesses to voluntarily conserve electricity during this time. Currently, no system-wide outages are expected.

Today’s conditions are expected to be similar to those experienced on Monday, July 11, 2022. On that day, Texans and businesses responded by voluntarily conserving electricity and helping ERCOT successfully meet record power demand by reducing their energy use by 500 MWs. 

Conservation is a reliability tool ERCOT has deployed more than four dozen times since 2008 to successfully manage grid operations. This notification is issued when projected reserves may fall below 2300 MW for 30 minutes or more.

ERCOT encourages all electric customers to visit the Public Utility Commission’s (PUC) Power to Save or their electric provider’s websites to get important conservation tips. According to the PUC, ways to reduce electricity use during peak times include turning up your thermostat a degree or two, if comfortable, and postponing running major appliances or pool pumps during the requested timeframe.

ERCOT continues to use all tools available to manage the grid effectively and reliably, including using reserve power and calling upon large electric customers who have volunteered to lower their energy use.

ERCOT emphasizes that the call for conservation is limited to the hours of 2-9 p.m. on Wednesday, July 13.

Factors driving the need for this important action by customers:

• Record high electric demand. The heat wave that has settled on Texas and much of the central United States is driving increased electric use. Other grid operators are operating under similar conservative operations programs as ERCOT due to the heatwave.
• Low wind. Wind generation is currently generating less than what is historically generated in this time period.
• Forced thermal outages. The number of forced outages in thermal generation exceeds ERCOT forecasts.
• Solar. Developing cloud cover in West Texas has reduced the amount of solar generation.

Under current projected scenarios, performance of the generation fleet Wednesday is:

Note: Total forecasted demand is 78,451 MW.

How to track electricity demand

• View daily peak demand forecast, current load, and available generation at http://www.ercot.com.
• Follow ERCOT on Twitter (@ERCOT_ISO) and Facebook (Electric Reliability Council of Texas).
• Sign up for the ERCOT mobile app (available for download at the Apple App Store and Google Play).
• Subscribe to the EmergencyAlerts list at EmergencyAlerts.

Consumer assistance

Public Utility Commission of Texas Hotline – 1-888-782-8477

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ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, manages the flow of electric power to more than 26 million Texas customers, representing about 90 percent of the state’s electric load. As the Independent System Operator for the region, ERCOT schedules power on an electric grid that connects more than 52,700+ miles of transmission lines and 1,030+ generation units, including PUNs. ERCOT also performs financial settlement for the competitive wholesale bulk-power market and administers retail switching for more than 8 million premises in competitive choice areas. ERCOT is a membership-based 501(c)(4) nonprofit corporation, governed by a board of directors and subject to oversight by the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Texas Legislature.

Contact

ERCOT External Affairs Team

media@ercot.com