Austin's main power provider reported Thursday that Tuesday's record-breaking energy demand is now in second place. Wednesday's 2,461 megawatts of power broke the previous day's record of 2,445 MW.
Data collected from this month also broke the previous record high for the month of June, which was set in 2006 at 2,304 MW. Data this month has exceeded data from June 2006 eight times over.
Austin Energy has more than 3,000 MW to meet Austin's demand each day. One megawatt can power 750 homes, said Austin Energy spokesman Carlos Cordova.
"What's unusual about our peak this week is that it's normally not set until August or September when temperatures are hotter," Cordova said. "This gives you a good indication of how hot it's been."
The early summer heat wave started on May 19, and as of Thursday, temperatures have reached triple digits 14 times, said chief meteorologist Burton Fitzsimmons of News 8 Austin. Fitzsimmons said this June is the hottest June on record since 1898 when temperatures first started being recorded.
"The comparison to last year is a complete world of difference," Fitzsimmons said."Last year's El Niño gave us 2 feet of rainfall heading into summer, yet this year, we're going into summer with only 9 inches of rain."
Temperatures for the weekend are expected to remain in the upper 90s.
UT's power plant, which provides electricity for the campus and has an 85 MW-per-day capacity, has also recorded higher levels of usage this month but the plant's associated director, Kevin Kuretich, said he does not expect the plant to break its record highs until late August or early September when the fall semester begins.
Michelle Foss, UT's chief energy economist at the Center for Energy Economics, said an increase in population and activity coupled with high temperatures may be causing record energy usage.
"If this is all-time peak usage in June, then this says to me that it's not just weather, it's growth," Foss said.
From 2000 to 2007, the population of Austin has increased by 27.9 percent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The city of Austin reports that the city's population has increased by 2.1 percent to 750,525 since 2007.
"Weather plus increasing population, activity in the Austin area and economic activity means higher demand for electricity," Foss said.
Be the first to comment on this article!