Electricity demand on Friday morning smashed its historic record of only 10 days old.
Posted at 10:10 a.m.
At eight o’clock this morning, the Hydro-Québec network had to provide nearly 40,300 megawatts to meet the needs of its customers. This is the first time that the winter peak has exceeded the 40,000 megawatt threshold. The previous record this year was in 2014.
Hydro-Quebec predicts that electricity consumption will peak Friday and Saturday due to freezing temperatures. “The very cold temperatures that have been sustained for several days are testing the ability of buildings to retain their heat, which is increasing the demand for heating,” said the state-owned company in its message inviting the population to reduce consumption by turning down the heating and postponing the use of energy-intensive household appliances, such as the clothes dryer and dishwasher.
The Crown corporation uses several means to meet peak demand. Power to certain activities, such as greenhouses or cryptocurrencies, is usually interrupted during peak demand hours in the morning and evening.
Hydro-Québec also has a gas-fired power plant in Bécancour, which can be started up if needed. The plant has been in use for 18 hours since the beginning of January, but was not in operation on Friday, Hydro said.