PJM Emergency

PJM Sets Record Sept. Peak Power Use
Weather and Local Grid Conditions Require Load Reductions PJM Monitoring Grid Closely Today as Power Supplies Remain Tight

(Valley Forge, Pa. – Sept. 11, 2013) – Due to unseasonably hot weather, PJM Interconnection, the electricity grid operator for 13 states and the District of Columbia, set a new record for September peak power use yesterday by meeting the demand for 144,370 megawatts. By comparison, the 2012 September peak demand was 129, 959 MW, and the PJM peak demand in July of this year was 157,509 MW. The hot weather continues in many areas today and electricity supplies remain tight.

PJM is responsible for keeping the grid running safely and reliably. Tuesday’s unusual, extreme heat combined with local equipment problems to create emergency conditions in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. PJM was forced to direct local utilities in those areas to immediately and temporarily cut electricity to some customers to avoid the possibility of an uncontrolled blackout over a larger area that would have affected many more people. Continued heat in some areas today will require load reductions through demand response, but PJM and its members are working to prevent additional emergency customer curtailments.

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