Despite cooler temps, ERCOT asks Texans to conserve electricity (again) Tuesday night

Due to low wind power production, expected thermal generation outages and hot temperatures, ERCOT is again asking Texans to reduce electricity use when safe to do so, according to a news release.

The agency, which manages Texas’ electric grid, is asking people to voluntarily conserve power from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, according to the release. ERCOT forecasts high demand and low reserves. ERCOT is also asking for all government agencies, including city and county buildings, to continue programs to reduce energy use at their facilities.

This is the fifth such request in the past five days, despite cooler temperatures that have dropped out of the 100s following a weekslong heat wave. Tuesday’s high temperature is expected to reach 97 degrees in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

According to the news release, requesting voluntary energy use reduction is an industry practice widely used to reduce demand on the electric grid during peak use hours during the summer’s hottest weather.

While it is asking Texans to voluntarily conserve electricity Tuesday afternoon and evening, ERCOT said in the release that it is not yet experiencing emergency conditions. Instead, the request to reduce energy use is a measure to prevent an emergency or the need for rolling blackouts. Other measures are being taken, such as bringing additional generators online sooner than scheduled and using reserve power.

If anybody is currently experiencing a power outage, ERCOT says it is local and “not related to overall grid reliability.”

ERCOT said residents can find energy-saving tips at ercot.com/txans.

High temperatures are expected to reach about 99 degrees on Wednesday and Thursday before topping 100 again on Friday.