Sask. sets all-time power use record during extreme cold stretch

Saskatchewan set a all-time peak power use record on Wednesday night, reaching 3,686 megawatts (MW) of power.

This beats the previous record, set on Dec. 27, 2017, by 76 MW, which is equal to the power use of approximately 76,000 homes.

SaskPower said it’s due to the stretch of cold weather.

“We set the record based on more customers being on the grid than we’ve had before and more industry in Saskatchewan, but really it was the cold weather that caused the spike in power use,” Scott McGregor, a spokesperson with SaskPower, said.

The record was set at 5:27 p.m.

“You have everyone coming home and turning on their lights, heating up their houses, turning on their stoves and TVs and so on, so we usually see a peak over the supper hours and [Wednesday night] was no different,” McGregor said.

SaskPower said there are ways to lower power consumption, including turning down the thermostat temperatures by a few degrees while residents are sleeping, out of the house for a few hours or on vacation. It also suggests using a timer for block heaters as vehicles only need to be plugged in for approximately four hours at a time.

“It’s really important to only heat your home when you need to be heating it,” McGregor said. “It’s good practice to knock your temperature down by two or three degrees in your house. That can really make a difference on your power bill throughout the year.”