Texas Power Grid Urges Consumers to Limit Electricity Use as Demand Soars

(Bloomberg) — Texans power prices surged 80% in a matter of hours amid shrinking spare electricity supplies as searing heat puts the state’s grid to the test.

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A megawatt-hour of power was commanding $4,500 as of late afternoon Tuesday, up from $2,500 earlier in the day, according to The Electric Reliability Council of Texas. The grid manager called for voluntary conservation efforts in an effort to avoid entering emergency conditions that could entail blackouts, Chief Executive Officer Pablo Vegas said during a board meeting.

Spare electricity supplies are forecast to dwindle to 2% of total capacity by 8 p.m. Central time from 15% earlier in the day, Ercot figures showed.

Households and businesses were asked to curtail power usage between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Power supplies typically tighten in the late afternoon and early evening as solar output wanes.