Sask. Power released that customers have set a new summer demand record for electricity of 3,597 megawatts.
The demand for electricity peaked the night of Wednesday, August 31st at 5:14 p.m.
The jump in electricity demand isn’t surprising with the heat wave.
“We see high peaks both in the summer and in the winter and that’s for a variety of reasons. Our peak typically occurs each day, especially during the work week around the dinner hour… that’s in part because we are still seeing a lot of industrial loads being used. Large customers are using a lot of power,” says Sask. Power spokesperson, Joel Cherry. “Plus, you have people getting home from work. In some cases, turning the air conditioning up, using appliances and that sort of thing.”
However, this peak was a 46 MW jump from this summer’s previous peak in July which was 3,551 MW; which Cherry says is quite a significant increase.
The peak in July was only 4 MW more than the previous peak.
The highest peak recorded for Sask. Power was December 30, 2021, with a record of 3.910 MW.
Cherry does say the current heat wave could bring even more peaks.
“It’s possible that it could be exceeded again. It’s going to be very hot throughout Saskatchewan… and we usually see the highest peaks when you have high temperatures throughout the province and all the really populated areas especially,” says Cherry.
With the peaks in electricity demand, higher-priced Sask. Power bills are expected to follow.
“The biggest thing right now is that if you have air conditioning is to only keep your house as cool as it needs to be and when it needs to be. So, for every degree that your air conditioning is lowered for an eight-hour period, customers could save up to 2% on their power cost,” says Cherry.
Other way residents can save on their power bills is by purchasing a programmable or smart thermostat to ensure the house is being cooled only when needed, closing blinds and window coverings during the daytime to keep the heat out, and postponing the use of the stove or dishwasher that can create heat within the home.
More tips to conserve power can be found on their website.
