Texas utilities are asking customers to voluntarily cut back on energy use as an oppressive heat wave continues to bake the South.

In Alabama, where the heat dome arrived to the coastal region on Tuesday, utilities and energy suppliers are not anticipating rolling blackouts or voluntary requests for customers to conserve energy. They say they are well-equipped to handle the excessive heat that will grip Alabama through Sunday.

“Even though we see a rise in demand, as we normally do when the weather becomes warmer, Alabama Power does not anticipate any issues in meeting the electrical demands of our customers,” said Beth Thomas, spokeswoman at the Birmingham-based electric utility that provides service to approximately 1.5 million customers in the southern two-thirds of the state.

Southern counties

Alabama Power, Riviera Utilities and Baldwin EMC provide electrical coverage to the coastal counties of Mobile and Baldwin counties where heat indexes – the “feels like” temperatures – will peak out at 110 to 115 degrees, or higher, on Thursday and Friday.

None of those utilities say they anticipate an official request for consumers to conserve energy. In Texas, where heat indexes have soared to record levels this month, utilities have called on voluntary energy conservation as a way to avoid rolling blackouts during periods of high demand.

Kim Frank, spokeswoman with Baldwin EMC – which serves the largest number of customers in Baldwin County including popular summer tourist spots like Gulf Shores and Orange Beach – said the company is not in a situation that might lead to mandatory reductions. But the company will “greatly appreciate” voluntary conservation measures.

“During the summer, we experience our ‘peak’ energy consumption between the hours of 3-6 p.m.,” said Frank. “This is the time most families return home from work and begin their evening tasks; unfortunately, a lot of these tasks involved electricity. When everyone uses electricity at the same time, it places a large demand on equipment, which can lead to power outages of extreme heat.”

Utility companies are pushing out similar tips for energy conservation via social media and other outlets in recent days. Some of the highlights:

• Raise temperature settings on your thermometer by a few degrees. Recommendations include raising thermometer settings to 76 to 78 degrees, and making further adjustments when homes and businesses are unoccupied.
• Use a ceiling fan to help keep cool.
• Closing blinds and curtains to ensure rooms are cooled.
• Repairing air leaks around doors and windows, and ensuring windows are completely shut.
• Delay the use of major appliances, such as a laundry dryer and oven.
• Turn off unnecessary lights and electronic devices.
• Getting air conditioners routinely inspected.
• Replace air filters every three months so the system can operate as efficient as possible.

Investments

Mayors and other officials on the Gulf Coast say the rapid growth of Baldwin County is putting stress on the power systems during the hottest times of the year.

Fairhope and Robertsdale are two city-owned utilities that distribute their own electricity to customers, and the mayors in both cities say they are not worried about energy overuse.

“We don’t have capacity issues that will force us into rolling blackouts,” said Fairhope Mayor Sherry Sullivan, whose city has had to call on residents to voluntarily conserve water in the past two years.

Fairhope Utilities invested $15 million into the electric system by upgrading substations, and changing distribution lines to service approximately 7,000 residential and commercial customers. Sullivan said other investments into the system will continue as the city continues to experience fast growth.

Robertsdale Mayor Charles Murphy said his city underwent $4 million in upgrades to its system in 2017, allowing them to add capacity at a time of growth.

He said all the cities in coastal Alabama are equipped to handle the current heat wave.

“I would say with most of the systems in South Alabama, we have added capacity over the years,” Murphy said. “We should be able to handle all of these loads with no problems (because of) with all the storm activity we’ve had over the years, we’ve had to reinforce the system and add additional capacity to it. Our customers are pretty fortunate.”

North Alabama

In the northern part of the state, which will also experience an excessive heat warning the next two days, utilities in Decatur and Huntsville are prepared to handle the excessive energy use.

Their confidence in the system comes after around 1,400 of customers were without power during a cold weather snap around Christmas.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) supplies electricity to local power companies in 17 counties in North Alabama including Huntsville and Decatur utilities, and recently released an report addressing the rolling blackouts that occurred in December.

“We have spent the spring working on our maintenance and procedures and also ensuring our employees are ready to work in the heat,” said Scott Fiedler, spokesman with the TVA.

Joe Gehrdes, spokesman with Huntsville Utilities, said their utility – which distributes energy to 210,000 meters in Madison County – said they are ready to meet demand.

“As long as (TVA) is ready, we are ready,” he said.