Pa. utility companies say they can meet summer 2021 energy needs

Separated by more than 1,600 miles, Texas and Pennsylvania are two of the largest energy producers in the country. 

But four months after winter storms shut down much of Texas’ power grid, killing hundreds of people and leaving thousands more without heat, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas on Monday, asked residents to conserve energy until Friday, to prevent further outages as summer temperatures soar. 

Forecasts in the Lone Star State showed the mercury was in the 90s on Tuesday, where it is projected to remain all week. 

Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, the commonwealth’s 11 electric distribution companies (EDCs) and its electric transmission organization, PJM Interconnection, told the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) this week, that they are ready and able to meet the energy needs of Pennsylvanians this summer. 

In a statement Tuesday, the PUC said that the utility distributors and PJM had confirmed “that there is adequate capacity and supply to meet the electric energy needs of Pennsylvania and the region this summer.” 

Almost all of the distribution companies noted in their reports that the anticipation of a warmer and wetter summer could cause outage concerns as energy demand grows and summer storms affect electricity distribution across the commonwealth. 

“Based on national forecasts, Pennsylvania utilities and power grid operators note that above-average temperatures are likely this summer – as is wetter than normal weather – impacting air conditioner usage and other electric distribution demands,” the PUC said in a statement. 

The Capital-Star read through several reports submitted by the state’s largest providers. Here are a few conclusions: 

PPL:

“PPL Electric does not foresee concerns with the system’s delivery capacity during the upcoming summer based on its performance during previous winter cold spells and summer heat waves, ongoing investments in reliability, capacity upgrades, and customer adoption of energy efficiency and conservation opportunities.”

Citizens’ Electric: 

“The Company believes it is ready and well-positioned for the coming summer storm season. Through the application of the above initiatives, safety, reliability and customer satisfaction will be maintained throughout 2021.”

UGI: 

“Based on the forecasted summer peak load, UGI does not expect any significant issues with respect to capacity from a transmission or distribution perspective.” 

The 2021 Summer Readiness Overview Reports for each company can be found here.