• A historic winter storm caused record-breaking electricity demand across the U.S., with PJM Interconnection reporting a preliminary winter peak load of 145,000 MW, surpassing the previous record.
• PJM exported 8,000 MW to neighboring grids, highlighting the strain on energy infrastructure as temperatures dropped to single digits in the Midwest and Northeast.
• The Tennessee Valley Authority also hit an all-time peak demand of 35,319 MW, prompting calls for energy conservation to ease grid pressure.
• Proactive measures, including alerts and coordination with member companies, helped PJM maintain grid reliability despite extreme conditions.

A historic winter storm gripping much of the United States this week pushed power grids to their limits, with PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest grid operator, reporting a preliminary record for winter electricity demand.

On the morning of Wednesday, Jan. 22, PJM’s system hit an instantaneous peak load of 145,000 megawatts (MW), surpassing the previous winter record of 143,700 MW set in February 2015. The grid operator also exported 8,000 MW to neighboring systems, underscoring the strain on energy infrastructure as temperatures plunged to single digits across the Midwest and Northeast.

PJM, which serves 65 million people across 13 states from Illinois to New Jersey, said the record demand was driven by extreme cold that blanketed much of the country.

Mike Bryson, PJM’s senior vice president of operations, warned that high demand of nearly 140,000 MW was expected to continue possibly until the end of the week.

“We’ve taken a number of steps to prepare for this cold weather, and our system has performed remarkably thus far,” Bryson said in a statement. (Related: The ultimate winter energy guide: Food, habits and hacks to keep you going.)

The surge in demand sent spot power prices soaring, with PJM’s West Hub in western Pennsylvania hitting a record high of $275 per megawatt hour. Natural gas demand also reached unprecedented levels, further complicating grid operations as generators scrambled to secure fuel supplies.

Other grid operators also straining due to high demand for heating

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which supplies power to 10 million people across seven southeastern states, also reported an all-time peak demand of 35,319 MW on Wednesday morning, breaking its previous record set just a week earlier on Jan. 17.

Temperatures in the TVA region dipped to 11 degrees Fahrenheit, prompting the utility to urge customers to conserve power on the evening of Tuesday, Jan. 21, to ease the strain on the grid.

PJM officials credited proactive measures for helping the grid withstand the historic demand. In the days leading up to the storm, the grid operator issued a series of alerts and advisories, including a Cold Weather Alert, a Maintenance Outage Recall to bring generators back online and a Maximum Generation Alert to notify neighboring regions of potential export curtailments.

“We worked closely with member companies to resolve any cold-weather issues before the deep freeze set in,” Bryson said. “All of those steps served to help PJM and our members get ready for the cold weather.”

PJM exported nearly 8,000 MW of electricity to neighboring grids. Bryson noted that such cooperation is a two-way street, with PJM also having relied on neighboring systems during past crises.

The record-breaking demand comes amid growing concerns about the resilience of the U.S. power grid in the face of increasingly extreme weather events. The February 2021 winter storm Uri, which caused widespread blackouts in Texas and strained grids across the Midwest, serves as a stark reminder of the risks posed by severe cold.

PJM’s performance this week suggests that lessons from past crises have been applied, with improved coordination and preparedness helping to avert widespread outages. However, the strain on the grid also underscores the challenges of transitioning to a system more reliant on renewable energy while maintaining the grid’s reliability.

As renewable energy sources like wind and solar play a larger role in the energy mix, grid operators must navigate the intermittency of these resources, particularly during extreme weather events. Natural gas, which remains a critical source of flexible generation, has faced its own challenges this week, with soaring demand and supply constraints driving prices higher.

With significant demand expected to persist through Thursday, grid operators remain on high alert. PJM officials emphasized that verified metered load data, which can take up to 90 days to finalize, will provide a clearer picture of the system’s performance.

For now, the focus remains on ensuring reliability as the Arctic blast continues to test the limits of the nation’s energy infrastructure.

“Our members have performed remarkably thus far, and I am grateful for their efforts,” Bryson said.

Watch this clip of cars along a highway stuck in traffic due to major snowfall.

This video is from the channel The Prisoner on Brighteon.com.

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Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

Reuters.com

InsideLines.PJM.com

Brighteon.com