The mid-Atlantic’s major power grid operator on Sunday morning ended an emergency request for consumers to reduce electricity that was prompted by increased demand amid frigid temperatures.
PJM Interconnection urged the 65 million people it serves in Pennsylvania and 12 other states to conserve electricity beginning Saturday by turning down thermostats if health permitted, avoiding use of major appliances and turning off non-essential lights and equipment.
It was the first call for conservation across PJM’s service region since the polar vortex of 2014, according to the company.
“The PJM system-wide call for conservation prompted by frigid weather ended Dec. 25 at 9:30 a.m. after a morning peak of approximately 118,000 [megawatts],” the company said in a statement. “PJM does not anticipate issues serving the forecast peak load of around 123,000 MW on Dec. 25.”
PJM says it implemented several emergency procedures in the days leading up to Christmas weekend, including maximum generation alerts to power plants and pre-emergency and load emergency management.
“PJM extends its thanks to members and state partners for the system-wide cooperation to effectively and speedily communicate the need to conserve energy,” the company’s statement said. “We also thank consumers for helping PJM get through this cold weather event by relieving the strain on the grid.”
Snow, wind and extreme cold throughout much of the country heading into the holiday weekend have resulted in an estimated 1.7 million households and businesses losing power, according to the Associated Press. On Saturday, about 22,500 customers in Pennsylvania were affected by power outages.
By Sunday, outages statewide were down to about 5,000, with fewer than five affected customers in Centre County.
