As Dallas and other Texas cities prepare to face heat this June, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has stated that the state’s power grid will have sufficient energy to withstand the heat.
An assessment by ERCOT in mid-May found that there would be sufficient power generation all summer.
“The ERCOT region is expected to have sufficient installed generating capacity to serve peak demands in the upcoming summer season, June – September 2022, under normal system conditions and most of the reserve capacity risk scenarios examined,” a summary of the assessment reads. “This SARA report includes seven risk scenarios reflecting alternative assumptions for peak demand, unplanned thermal outages, and renewable generation output.”
According to NBC 5, some Texas residents have worried about losing power this month after power failures in February 2021.
Two tennis coaches from a Dallas youth camp at Kiest Park Tennis Center spoke to NBC 5, expressing concerns about other risks that could come with hot weather.
According to coach Devonte Thomas, he recently lost power in his home.
“Last week, my power went out. I woke up, and it was hot, extremely hot. Warmer than what it used to be. It sure made me start thinking about it then,” Thomas explained.
“We make sure they’re drinking lots of water,” coach Carlos Cruz told NBC 5. “We take lots of breaks, making sure they’re standing in the shade.”
According to the coaches, the tennis court surfaces become hot in the summer, making staying cool and hydrated vital.
Both coaches said they have worried about the possibility of the air conditioning going out. While Thomas is a new coach to North Texas, Cruz was with the youth camp last summer. He told NBC 5 that the cooling equipment failed last year.
“I hope we’ve got enough because I’d hate to come off this hot court to get some nice cool air, and then I walk into more heat because the air conditioning is not working,” Cruz said.
Thomas recently arrived in the area from Mississippi.
The May 16 assessment shows a 91,392-megawatt resource capacity, while the summer peak is expected to be 77,317 megawatts.
Bruce Bullock, the SMU Maguire Energy Institute director, told NBC 5 it is “a big cushion assuming everything goes right.”
The resource capacity is made up of multiple types of fuel, including solar and wind.
Bullock explained that ERCOT could issue conservation warnings to prevent an outage if demand gets too high.
“I think it’s going to be OK, but we need to be watchful of it, and I think that when ERCOT asks us to do something, we should probably do so, and be mindful of it,” he said.
On June 6, NBC 5 predicted a coming week with temperatures in the high 90s. On June 10, temperatures are expected to hit 100 degrees.
An average of 20 days per year reach 100 degrees in North Texas, according to NBC 5, with the first such day typically falling on the first of July.