ERCOT ‘weather watch’ extended through Friday

HOUSTON – The operator of Texas’ power grid extended a “weather watch” ahead of what the agency projects could be record demand.

The watch does not indicate the state will see widespread outages or that ERCOT will call for energy conservation. The watch is merely an indication of forecasted high demand on Texas’ power infrastructure.

The weather watch began Sunday and was initially scheduled through Monday. It has now been extended through Aug. 11.

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The Texas power grid set an unofficial all-time demand record Tuesday and may surpass it next week. ERCOT in a release said there is currently enough capacity to meet the forecasted demand.

So far this summer, the state has seen seven new all-time peak demands records for electricity usage.

Texas set all-time records for electricity usage 11 times last year.

ERCOT issued its first weather watch in June. The advisories are part of a new communications tool that the agency launched in an “ongoing effort to be more open and transparent.”

MORE: Track the Texas power grid: Watch ERCOT’s current grid conditions in real-time