Midwest & Northeast power companies ready for heat wave
(Reuters) - The power grids in the U.S. Midwest and Northeast said they have more than enough resources to keep the lights on this week as homes and businesses crank up their air conditioners to escape another brutal heat wave.
The grid operators said power usage would be high but was not expected to break any demand records.
High temperatures in Chicago were expected to reach 96 degrees Fahrenheit (36 Celsius) on Monday and 100 on Tuesday before dropping to near normal levels in the mid 80s on Wednesday, according to AccuWeather.com.
In New York, the mercury was expected to hit 92 degrees on Monday, 95 on Tuesday and 94 on Wednesday before falling to near normal levels in the 80s on Thursday, AccuWeather.com said.
New York power company Consolidated Edison Inc, which locked out its 8,000 member union workforce on July 1 due to a contract dispute, asked its 3.2 million customers in New York City and Westchester County to conserve power during the heat wave but had not imposed any voltage reductions.
During the last two heat waves that baked the Big Apple this summer, Con Edison reduced the voltage, also known as a brown out, in several neighborhoods to take the load off the system and allow workers to fix heat stressed equipment.
The company said past voltage reductions had nothing to do with the lockout, noting the company reduced the voltage before the lockout and after. The company and union were expected to meet again later Monday.
The two regions where the power usage will get closest to past demand records this week were New York and the Midwest.
http://news.yahoo.com/midwest-northeast-power-companies-ready-heat-wave-143134106--finance.html
