Chill brings demand for electricity to record levels
GUERNSEY ELECTRICITY recorded its highest demand for electricity on record this week as temperatures dropped to below freezing.
On Tuesday 9 February, the effect of Storm Darcy saw the company supply a peak demand of 92 megawatts and just over 1.6m. kilowatt hours of electricity to island homes.
That is 3MW higher than the previous record set in 2018 when the so-called ‘Beast from the East’ brought a similar period of extremely cold weather locally. 3MW of electricity is equivalent to 1,000 3kW kettles all on at once.
‘Demand for electricity reached record levels this week and despite being in lockdown, our dedicated and hard-working team continue to ensure a secure and reliable supply to the island,’ said Jon Sexton, head of generation and assets at Guernsey Electricity.
‘We use technology that can accurately predict the island’s requirement for electricity based on forecasted weather data, so we were prepared to meet this increased demand.’
Currently, more than 90% of Guernsey’s electricity needs are met through the importation of 100% renewable electricity – wind, solar and hydro – and the power station is used to top up when required.
The current cold spell means the power station will be busy over the next few days, but in the long run, the role of the power station is changing.
Guernsey Electricity continues to progress a second cable directly with Normandy, which will provide 100MW of renewable and sustainable energy.
When the two cables are in place, together with on-island renewable generation, Guernsey Electricity says it will be able to meet all of current and future energy needs and dramatically reduce carbon emissions in line with the targets set out in the States’ Energy Policy agreed in 2020.
