January 11, 2010

PHOTO CAPTION: Plant Lowman’s Assistant Plant Operator Deidra Monigan is one of many PowerSouth employees who work hard to ensure adequate power is generated to meet high load demands in winter months.

ANDALUSIA, ALA. – Below-freezing temperatures across Alabama and northwest Florida have electric consumers cranking up the heat, prompting an all-time system peak of 2,382 megawatts (unadjusted) on PowerSouth’s system. The peak, which was reached at 7 a.m. Monday morning, exceeded the previous record by 176 megawatts.

The new peak well surpassed PowerSouth’s projected winter demand of 2,098 megawatts.

Ensuring adequate energy for system peaks is critical, and the Energy Resources and Energy Control departments make long- and short-term capacity decisions to cover load projections.

“Our system operators closely monitor our projected demand and manage our resources accordingly,” said Tim Hattaway, Manager of PowerSouth’s Energy Control Center. 

PowerSouth has a variety of resources available to meet required high capacity demands, including coal, natural gas and hydroelectric power plants, as well as purchased power agreements.

PowerSouth generated 503 megawatts of capacity at Plant Lowman, 147 at McWilliams, 520 at Vann, 5.5 at the Gantt and Point A hydros to help cover the high demand. Another 84 megawatts were generated at Alabama Power’s Miller plant, in which PowerSouth has an 8.16 ownership interest in Units 1 and 2. The remaining energy needed to cover the additional load was purchased.

“Meeting the peak load like we did Monday is like winning a championship,” said PowerSouth’s Vice President of Power Supply Damon Morgan. “For the plants, it requires having sound maintenance practices all year long, not just this week. It requires having knowledgeable operators who know how to handle these conditions. It takes a host of folks behind the scenes, scheduling and handling fuel, accounting for parts and equipment. It takes a lot of preparation, sound training, attention to safety and environmental performance. PowerSouth should be proud of all of its employees who helped ensure that the power was flowing.” 

“We don’t anticipate any more system peaks in the near future,” Hattaway said. “As the temperatures gradually begin to warm up this week, we should see our demand return to normal levels."

 

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About PowerSouth:

PowerSouth serves the wholesale energy needs of 16 electric cooperatives and four municipal electric systems in Alabama and northwest Florida, with more than a million consumers in 39 Alabama and 10 Florida counties. PowerSouth is dedicated to providing reliable energy at the lowest possible cost to its members.

 

For more information:

Mark Ingram, Corporate Communication Manager

334.427.3330

mark.ingram@powersouth.com

www.powersouth.com

 

PowerSouth is an EEO and AAP employer