Extreme cold temperatures across the Province drove peak hourly electricity demand to a record high-level Friday night.
According to BC Hydro, demand reached 11,300 megawatts.
BC Hydro said despite the record-breaking demand, our province did not require any imports from the market, but had the generating capacity to provide support to Alberta and the Pacific Northwest.
Approximately 200 megawatts were exported to Alberta following an electrical grid alert from the Alberta Electrical Systems Operator. (AESO)
At approximately 6:30 pm MST yesterday (Saturday), the AESO asked Albertans to reduce their electricity use to minimize the potential for rotating outages across Alberta.
Albertans are asked to immediately reduce their electricity use to minimize the potential for rotating outages across the province. See our media release: Albertans Asked to Conserve Power to Minimize Potential for Rotating Outages  » AESO pic.twitter.com/TAipaZzdzU
— AESO (@theAESO) January 14, 2024
 “Extreme weather events like drought and cold snaps are putting people and communities at increased risk,” said Josie Osborne, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation.
“Thanks to the resiliency of our energy system and exceptional planning by BC Hydro, we are able to meet the needs of British Columbians while also delivering clean, reliable hydro-electricity to our neighbours in Alberta when they needed it most.”
The previous demand record was 10,977 megawatts set during the cold snap in December 2022.