On November 7, the PJM Interconnection and its members announced they are prepared to meet the forecasted winter electricity demand across 13 states and the District of Columbia.

“We’re confident that PJM will be able to serve customer demand reliably this winter,” said Michael E. Bryson, senior vice president – Operations. “Our diverse resource portfolio, healthy reserves and strong-and-improving generator performance are assets in operating an efficient system, and we collaborate with our generation and transmission owners to prepare for the most extreme cold weather scenarios.”

PJM forecasts peak demand at around 134,000 megawatts this winter, and has more than 187,000 MW of resources that includes natural gas, coal, nuclear, hydropower, wind, solar and other resources.

PJM’s all-time winter peak is 143,295 MW, set on Feb. 20, 2015.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted a warmer-than-average winter for much of the region PJM serves.  PJM analyzes the expected demand for electricity, weather predictions and other factors to develop its forecast for winter operations.

PJM also works with members to prepare for cold weather by testing resources, conducting drills and surveying generators for fuel inventory. PJM’s preparation checklist includes everything from increasing staffing for weather emergencies to maintenance activities to ensure equipment is ready for winter conditions.

As part of its regular winter operations, PJM closely coordinates with natural gas supply and transportation across the region. In addition, PJM also studies unforeseen impacts of pipeline service disruptions and the effect on generators, and has found that there are no associated reliability concerns for the coming winter.

Keeping the lights on during extreme weather can come down to the decisions made by PJM’s dispatchers, who direct the generation of power and the transmission of electricity to the regional utilities 24 hours a day.

PJM’s new video, “A Day in the Life of Dispatch,” explains how the supply and demand of electricity is balanced across the PJM grid for 65 million people.

For more information, visit the PJM Interconnection website.

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[Posted: November 7, 2019]

11/11/2019