PJM Calls on Demand Response for Oct. 13-14 as DOE Order Runs Through Oct. 16

PJM Interconnection called for demand response on Oct. 13 and 14 and recalled active generator maintenance outage tickets amid unusually warm fall weather and scheduled work ahead of winter.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued an emergency order giving PJM temporary dispatch authority on Oct. 12, declaring a statutory emergency in the region. Effective Oct. 13 through Oct. 16, the order authorized PJM to dispatch specified generating units and direct data centers and other large electricity users to run backup resources as a last resort before or during an Energy Emergency Alert 3. That alert level can involve firm load interruption. Backup resources serving critical facilities, including hospitals, water-treatment facilities and 911 call centers, were excluded. The order covers PJM’s territory in all or parts of 13 states and Washington, D.C.

PJM issued pre-emergency load-management actions for Oct. 13 and 14. Its Maximum Generation Alert and Load Management Alert, first issued for Oct. 13, were extended through Oct. 14. PJM also recalled non-firm sales to neighboring systems. The recall of active generator maintenance outage tickets took effect at noon ET (1600 UTC) Oct. 14.

PJM’s initial Oct. 11 forecast put demand at 111,500 MW or higher on Oct. 13. It also projected that the system would be within 900 MW of its reserve margin on Oct. 14, with generation outages reaching 61,591 MW. At 2 p.m. ET (1800 UTC) Oct. 13, PJM’s updated load forecasts were 112,447 MW for Oct. 13 and 113,312 MW for Oct. 14. Generation outages were about 61,000 MW on Oct. 13. These figures were forecasts, not final demand readings.

Large-load backup generation had not been used as of the Oct. 14 update. PJM’s fall maintenance season typically runs from mid-September into early December, as crews work on generation and transmission equipment ahead of winter demand. Mike Bryson, PJM’s senior vice president of system operations, said unusually warm weather was reducing the time available for that work. “Unseasonable weather patterns are providing fewer days to perform important maintenance or construction on the generation and transmission equipment serving our footprint.” The DOE order remains effective through Oct. 16.