Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard
Link copied to clipboard

How hot was the weekend? Hot enough to set a new record, says regional electric grid operator

Utility customers set a new weekend record for electricity use on Saturday when temperatures pushed close to 100 degrees in the states served by PJM, the regional grid manager based in Valley Forge.

The temperature sign atop the Transport Workers Union Local 234 headquarters on North 2nd Street displays the current temperature at 3 p.m. July 17, 2019. The National Weather Service has posted an "excessive heat warning" through Sunday, with the year's highest daytime temperatures.
The temperature sign atop the Transport Workers Union Local 234 headquarters on North 2nd Street displays the current temperature at 3 p.m. July 17, 2019. The National Weather Service has posted an "excessive heat warning" through Sunday, with the year's highest daytime temperatures.Read moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer

Utility customers set a new weekend record for electricity use on Saturday when temperatures pushed close to 100 degrees in the states served by PJM Interconnection, the regional grid operator based in Valley Forge.

Electricity demand exceeded 150,000 megawatts at its peak on Saturday, surpassing the previous weekend record for electricity usage of 149,644 MW recorded on July 7, 2012, according to PJM, which coordinates utilities in 13 states and the District of Columbia.

Electricity demand peaked at 152,000 MW on Friday, the high for the year, according to PJM. Weekdays typically have higher usage because there is more commercial and industrial activity than on weekend days.

PJM’s all-time one-day highest power use was recorded in the summer of 2006 at 165,563 MW.

Electricity demand eased Sunday as a more moderate air mass moved into the western part of the PJM footprint, which extends between New Jersey and Illinois. That front reduced Sunday’s power demand to about 140,000 MW.