We Used Several Megawatts of Power last Weekend

The Tennessee Valley Authority reports that last weekend’s cold snap, which dipped down to below 10 degrees in some areas, ranked fourth in the utility’s “Top 10” winter weekend power peaks. Preliminary numbers show TVA’s power peak of 28,863 megawatts occurred on Sunday, January 8. Sunday’s peak was about 4 percent off the utility’s all-time winter weekend high set on January 9, 2010.
TVA says Saturday morning’s peak of 27,575 megawatts is the ninth-highest winter weekend peak. The company also reports that consumers in their seven-state service area used 621,364 megawatt hours in a 24-hour period, which is also the utility’s fourth highest weekend energy day—enough electricity to power the city of Las Vegas for 10 days.
Because electricity demand is driven by temperature, TVA uses a meteorologist who monitors the weather across the region.
On January 5, TVA started asking to prepare for the weather by issuing tips on how to conserve electricity to reduce their power bill.