APS, SRP urging customers to conserve power

Corporation Commission calling for emergency meeting on power supply

The call for an emergency meeting comes as Arizona experiences extreme heat, and neighboring California experiences rolling blackouts.

PHOENIX - Two of Arizona's utility providers are asking their customers to conserve power amid extreme heat.

The Valley saw record-breaking heat on August 18 and 19, with Phoenix reaching 115°F at one point in the afternoonon both August 18 and 19, breaking old records that were set back in 2011 and 1986, respectively.

APS

On August 18 and 19, officials with APS urged residents in its service area to conserve power, due to extreme energy demand as a result of high temperatures.

According to a statement released by the utility provider on August 18, officials say peak usage on its system usually occurs between 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and they are asking customers to reduce power usage during this time, suggesting that customers:

Raise thermostat settings to at least 80°F
Turn off extra lights
Avoid use of major appliances, like dishwashers, clothes washer, and dryers
Avoid pool pump operations

"With the whole region experiencing extreme temperatures, the demand for electricity may approach the full capacity of supply available, which is why each customer taking steps to use less power will make a difference toward preventing any service interruptions," officials wrote.

"We are asking our customers to conserve because we’re part of a widespread weather event impacting power supply, and while our supplies are good, but the off-chance something happens, we want to be able to keep the lights on for our customers," said APS spokesperson Jill Hanks.

Hanks also spoke out on the possibility of blackouts in Arizona.

"We don’t anticipate having to take some of the extreme measures like California is with rolling blackouts," said Hanks.

SRP

On August 19, SRP officials say the Salt Fire burning in the Tonto National Forest has caused a large, eastern Arizona transmission line to go out of service. That energy transmission line brings energy to many SRP customers in the Valley,

"The balance of SRP's system is currently operating normally, however, the loss of this transmission line could result in SRP not having sufficient power to meet high customer demand during record-hot temperatures," officials wrote, in a statement.

SRP officials say it is unknown when they can re-energize the transmission line impacted without additional service outages.

Similar to APS, SRP officials are asking customers to reduce energy use from 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., in order to avoid potential rotating outages.

Corporation Commission calling for urgent meeting

As the extreme heat persists, members of the Arizona Corporation are requesting an emergency meeting.

"Friday, several million people were impacted. Saturday, another million people. So my concern was how are we prepared in Arizona. Has anything changed with the incredible heat in Phoenix," said Corporation Commissioner Lea Marquez Peterson.

Peterson says the commission needs an emergency meeting to get assurances from utility companies that blackouts won't happen in Arizona.

"If air conditioning were turned off in Arizona or energy was impacted, it could be a life-and-death situation here with our intense temperatures," said Peterson.