Hot weekend could blow Texas power grid

We could be seeing some record breaking heat this weekend and as a result it may spell trouble for our already over worked power grid here in Texas.

ERCOT is expecting energy demands to near all-time highs for the month of May on Saturday, leading to what may be precarious conditions for the state power grid according to an article in Chron.com.

On Tuesday ERCOT issued a statement that publicly acknowledged their concern over the likelihood of increased demand on the power grid over the weekend as a result of high temperatures and has asked power plants to stop or at least delay scheduled power outages, per KHOU's Bill Bishop.

The powers that be, however, are claiming that the grid can handle the expected record breaking demand as the high heats move through the area. The chances of blackouts this weekend under the strain of the demand on our often unstable power grid still looms over Texans everywhere so my advise is to be prepared.

According to Austin-based energy consultant Doug Lewin, the Energy Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is expecting demand for power to reach 69.3 gigawatts on Saturday, May 7 as temperatures in Houston and Dallas hit highs in the low-to-mid '90s and eclipse 100 in towns such as Midland and Laredo, according to the article linked above.

The demand on the Texas power grid was only a wee bit higher during winter storm Uri. According to the Texas Oil & Gas study the demand reached around 70 gigawatts.

Grid conditions and energy availability projections across the state can be monitored in real-time by accessing ERCOT's Digital Dashboard.

Again, my advise is to be ready for the power outages. Plan on spending some time in the backyard in a kiddy pool if you have to.