RICHMOND, Va., Oct. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The
persistent hot and humid weather in July, August and September led
to customers in the area served by Dominion Virginia Power and
other interconnected utilities setting several all-time monthly
records for electricity usage.
Customers established monthly, consecutive month and quarterly
usage records this past summer.
For the three months from July 1 to
September 30, electricity usage was 28,204,283 megawatt
hours for Dominion Virginia Power customers and electric
cooperative customers served by Dominion's transmission system. The
previous quarterly high was 27,306,147 megawatt hours for the third
quarter in 2010.
Along with hot, humid weather, the company had an increase of
126,000 customers since the previous quarterly record was set.
Dominion Virginia Power serves 2.5
million customers in its service territory.
A megawatt hour is equal to 1 million watts of electricity
generated continuously for one hour, or enough electricity to power
about 250 homes for that time on the hottest and coldest days.
"It was not a summer of extreme high temperatures, but it was
very hot and humid for days on end and that drove demand," said
Robert M. Blue, president of
Dominion Virginia Power. "Our integrated system of power stations
and transmission lines were able to meet the increased demands
reliably and effectively. We also worked with customers on
conservation efforts, including declaring 10 'Smart Cooling' days
where customers enrolled in the voluntary program allow their
air-conditioning units to cycle on and off to reduce energy demand
at peak times."
July and August usage set a two-month record. Customers used
20,009,612 MWh. The previous two-month record was 19,376,313 MWh in
July and August of 2010.
August set a record for most electricity used in a month. From
Aug. 1 to August 31, electricity
usage was more than 10 million megawatt hours –10,016,899 to be
exact. The previous monthly record was 10,009,858 MWh set in
January 2014 as a result of the polar
vortex driving temperatures to record lows.
July of this year was the third highest usage month on record at
9,992,713 megawatt hours.
As a result of the hot, humid days that led to the new records,
some customers may see higher than normal electric bills. Dominion
Virginia Power offers payment
options to assist customers who have difficulty paying their bill.
Customers should visit www.dom.com or call 1-866-DOM-HELP to review
their options. Help is also available through EnergyShare, the
company's bill payment assistance and weatherization program for
qualified individuals, by calling 2-1-1.
"What is particularly interesting about this pattern is that we
are now seeing peak demands for electricity in both the summer and
winter," Blue said. "For many years our all-time peaks were
occurring in late afternoons of the summer months. Now we also are
seeing record demand in early mornings of winter days. That makes
our balanced portfolio of generation sources all the more important
as we meet customer demands no matter the weather or time of
day."
Dominion Virginia Power's
all-time hourly integrated peak demand was 21,651 megawatts set on
the morning of February 20, 2015.
Across Dominion's service area, power stations and transmission
lines were up to the task of providing electricity to meet the
public's need for air conditioning to beat the heat.
Blue noted that in the last two years Dominion Virginia Power
has completed two highly efficient natural gas-fueled power
stations in Warren and
Brunswick counties and is
constructing a third in Greensville
County. It also is adding solar generation at multiple sites
to help reduce power imports from other states and lessen the
reliance on coal.
While the Hampton Roads area
fared well generation-wise this summer, the heat wave foretold
potential problems for similar weather next year. On 20 different
days over the July-August timeframe, Dominion was forced to rely on
two aging coal-fueled generators to meet the demand. Yorktown Power
Station Units 1 and 2 were pressed into action by PJM, the regional
transmission system operator serving 13 states and the District of Columbia.
The Yorktown units do not meet
current limits on environmental emissions. An Administrative Order
issued by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allows Units 1 and 2
to continue to operate only to ensure reliability as determined by
PJM. Dominion will retire the two coal units next April when the
EPA Administrative Order expires.
Dominion has proposed the Skiffes Creek transmission line that
will run from Surry Nuclear Power Station to the Peninsula to
alleviate the problem, but the project has been delayed by
permitting processes and will not be completed by the time Yorktown
Units 1 and 2 are retired.
Dominion Virginia Power is a
subsidiary of Dominion (NYSE: D), one of the nation's largest
producers and transporters of energy. Dominion serves more than 6
million utility and retail energy customers. It has a portfolio of
approximately 25,700 megawatts of generation, 14,400 miles of
natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline, and 6,500
miles of electric transmission lines. Dominion also operates one of
the nation's largest natural gas storage systems with 1
trillion cubic feet of storage capacity. For more information about
Dominion, visit the company's website at www.dom.com.
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SOURCE Dominion Virginia Power