Extreme Texas heat wave drives electricity demand to all-time high: Will the state’s energy grid survive?

08/22/2024 / By Ethan Huff

It was another really hot week in the Lone Star State – so hit, in fact, that sources are warning that increased electricity demand could push the state’s energy grid beyond capacity.

As temperatures across Texas once again breach triple digits amid the latest extreme heat wave, Texans are cranking up their air conditioning units to the point that the state’s energy grid was at one point expected to reach all-time high usage of 86 gigawatts in the late afternoon of Aug. 19 and going into Aug. 20.

The previous all-time high for energy usage in Texas, by the way, was hit back in August of 2023 when 85.5 gigawatts of power was delivered – for perspective, one gigawatt of power is enough to power about 200,000 Texas homes.

At Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), temperatures hit a whopping 110 degrees Fahrenheit at one point this week. Other parts of Texas saw similar triple-digit readings exceeding the norm.

Because the Texas energy grid is struggling to keep up year after year, season after season due to overcapacity, energy prices are reportedly soaring – and energy reliability continues to drop.

You may recall the energy debacle that occurred in February 2021 when a severe winter storm caused statewide power and fuel shortages that left millions of Texas in the dark for multiple days in a row. Now that threat has reemerged, but this time due to extreme summer heat.

(Related: Texas has had a lot of problems over the years trying to keep the lights on every time there is extreme weather either hot or cold.)

Texas temperatures could get hotter still

Between the time block of 7 to 8 p.m. this past week, when the sun is starting to set but when the afternoon heat is usually the highest, energy prices in Texas reportedly topped $500 a megawatt-hour. This represents the highest hourly price in two weeks, according to grid data compiled by Arcus Power’s Nrgstream market data service.

So far for the summer of 2024, lights and air conditioners have remained steadily on in Texas, but the worst could be yet to come. That state is still on the verge of entering some of the hottest months of the year, which means energy problems could arise.

Media reports warn that Texas’ solar power grid is working smoothly at times when the sun is blazing. Enough energy is then stored up for the day to kick in battery power at sunset. Should even more extreme temperatures strike in the coming days, though, that could change.

BNN Bloomberg reported that even though it has been very hot in Texas as of late, it is still not quite as hot as several other brief periods of time in recent years when energy use reached all-time highs on 21 different occasions over the past several summers.

The so-called “heat dome” that has been hovering over Texas for the past week is reportedly on the verge of shifting north, which could bring in an upper-level low. This would mean an increased chance of rain and temperature highs in the 90s rather than the 100s.

Campaigning in the Texas summer is no joke! You are constantly seeking shade & are very happy when you find some! ?#Texas #heatwave #110degrees #hot #workinghard #KeepPushing #Austin pic.twitter.com/cyJZN2cOmJ

— Dr. Scott Firsing for Texas HD47 (@ScottFirsingTX) August 21, 2024