Why utility customers were told to turn down the heat during cold polar vortex

Aleanna Siacon
Updated

In the midst of a polar vortex that has brought record-breaking low temperatures to Michigan, consumers there are being asked to reduce their natural gas and electricity usage.

With the region facing subzero temperatures until the weekend, both of Michigan's two biggest utilities have requested customers turn their thermostats down.

Consumers Energy called for customers to voluntarily reduce their natural gas usage because a fire on Wednesday could lead to a shortage and DTE Energy asked customers to reduce their electric usage to help safeguard the reliability of their regional energy grid.

These requests came as the temperature in metro Detroit hovered at minus 11 degrees at 10:30 p.m., smashing the record for Jan. 30 of minus 4 degrees set in 1951. Temperatures in Macomb County were headed toward a predicted 12 below zero overnight — and record lows likely in much of the rest of Consumers Energy's service area, across mid- to northern Lower Peninsula.

Shortly after the fire broke out, Garrick Rochow, senior vice president of operations for Consumers Energy, asked residents and businesses to reduce their gas usage by doing the following:

  • Set thermostats to a lower temperature, such as setting heat to 65 degrees while you're home and 62 degrees when you're away for more than five hours.

  • Industrial and business customers are asked to temporarily reduce processes.

  • Seal and shut windows and doors, check for leaks by feeling around for cool air and ensure all windows and doors are closed tightly.

Rochow said he was confident that customers would dial down to 62 for the next day or two.

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"One thing I’ve found about Michiganders is that we’ve got a great state and everybody pitches in. We know that our customers are pitching in to make the right choice, and it’s making a difference in our operations," he said. The company also asked more than a dozen of its biggest industrial and institutional customers to reduce usage, he said.

The gas shortage should end in 24 to 48 hours, "about the length of this extreme cold spell," Rochow said.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also held a news conference Wednesday night echoing Consumers Energy’s call for action.

She urged those in the Lower Peninsula to turn their thermostats down to 65 degrees or less, from now until Friday at noon.

“So that we can get through this storm with minimal harm,” she said.

“Amplify this message.”

Michigan State Police tweeted that all state-owned facilities in the Lower Peninsula would be lowering their thermostats by 5 degrees to lessen the burden on the natural gas supply.

The Michigan Public Service Commission has ordered a suspension of all utility shutoffs during the cold spell, according to a news release from the Lansing regulators.

Christy Wicke, the executive director of generation for DTE Energy, Michigan's other giant utility, on Wednesday urged customers to voluntarily reduce their electricity usage amid "the extremely cold weather."

While DTE's plants are running well, their system is connected to energy grids in other states and Canada that are experiencing issues because of extreme weather, she explained in a statement.

Wicke provided the following ways customers can reduce their electricity usage:

  • Dial down thermostat several degrees in your home and wear additional layers of clothing

  • Minimize the use of electrical appliances and equipment, like washers, dryers, ovens, dishwashers and humidifiers

  • Turn off unnecessary lights

  • Open curtains on south-facing windows during the day and let sunlight naturally heat the home, close them at night to reduce the chill from cold windows

  • Use a heavy-duty, clear plastic sheet on a frame or tape a clear plastic film to the inside of the window frames during the cold winter months — but make sure the plastic is sealed tightly to reduce infiltration

Consumers Energy sent an urgent text alert on cellphones shortly after 10:30 p.m. Wednesday urging utility customers to lower thermostats and reduce energy usage or risk a dangerous gas shortage in the wake of record-breaking cold.

This came as the utility was scrambling to supply enough gas from reserve storage areas after a fire at the Ray Township Natural Gas Compressor Station in Macomb County broke out around earlier in the day. The fire was quickly brought under control, with no injuries, but to make up for turning off that station in Ray Township, the big utility — Michigan's second largest — activated underground storage fields to bolster its supply of natural gas, the utility's executives said.

Post by ConsumersEnergyMichigan.

President and CEO of CMS Energy & Consumers Energy Patti Poppe got on Facebook Live Wednesday evening with an appeal for Michiganders to consider reducing their thermostats “as much as you can,” after a fire broke out at one of their “most significant facilities.”

In addition to individual residential customers, General Motors has been requested by Consumers Energy to suspend operations at several manufacturing sites.

Ford Motor Co. is also taking measures in response to the extreme cold.

Contact Aleanna Siacon: ASiacon@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @AleannaSiacon.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why utility customers were told to turn down the heat during cold polar vortex