Florida public power utilities OUC and Kissimmee Utility Authority recently hit new power demand records with soaring temperatures hitting the state last week.
In Florida, Orlando-based OUC on Aug. 10 said that with record heat and heat indexes impacting Central Florida, OUC experienced new peak electric demand for its Orlando and St. Cloud service territories.
On Wednesday, Aug. 9, demand by OUC’s Orlando electric customers reached 1,349 megawatts, breaking records set on Monday and Tuesday. St. Cloud customers also set a record for electric demand on Wednesday, reaching 271 MW, eclipsing records set on Monday and Tuesday.
Previously, Orlando recorded a peak demand of 1,285 MW on June 25, 2019, while St. Cloud recorded a peak demand of 250 MW on July 3, 2023.
Meanwhile, as the heat index in the Kissimmee, Fla., region topped 110 degrees on Tuesday, Aug. 8, residents set a new all-time record for electricity use.
Kissimmee Utility Authority recorded an instantaneous system peak of 439.2 MW at 5:12 p.m. on Tuesday. On Monday, the utility recorded a system peak load of 435.7 megawatts, shattering the previous record of 416.2 set on July 13, 2022.