ERCOT Electric Reliability Council of Texas : sets new winter peak demand and January peak demand records

AUSTIN, TX, Jan. 9, 2017 - ERCOT set another new winter demand record Jan. 6, 2017. Electricity demand reached 59,650 MW during the 7 p.m. hour, beating the previous record of 57,924 MW set Dec. 19, 2016. Systemwide demand surpassed the previous record four hours in a row Jan. 6 between 6 and 10 p.m. and two hours in a row on Jan. 7 between 7 and 9 a.m.

ERCOT's new winter peak record also resulted in a new January peak record, which was previously 57,256 MW set Jan. 7, 2014.

*These numbers are preliminary and are subject to change pending final settlement in the ERCOT market.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) manages the flow of electric power to nearly 24 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 46,500 miles of transmission lines and 550 generating units. ERCOT also performs financial settlement for the competitive wholesale bulk-power market and administers retail switching for more than 7 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.