During a six-day heat wave last week, the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) says the state successfully met a new record peak demand for electricity of 33,956 MW on July 19, thanks to a balanced array of resources, including a large supply of available wind power.
On many days during extremely hot weather, the operator says winds can be very light or non-existent. However, on Friday, the NYISO had the benefit of more than 1,000 MW of wind power throughout much of the day to help meet demand.
The operator also relied on market participants' generation and transmission assets, demand response programs, and inter-regional coordination.
"The duration and large regional impact of last week's heat wave made it particularly challenging," says NYISO President and CEO Stephen G. Whitley. "However, our markets and system assets – including generating plants, transmission facilities and demand response programs – all performed very well throughout the duration of a very long and hot week."
