July 27, 2005—Con Edison set an all-time record for peak electricity demand on July 19th, reaching 12,361 megawatts at 4:00 p.m., which topped the 12,250 megawatts the company provided at 3:00 p.m., the company said.
Prior to then, the record was 12,207 megawatts set on August 9, 2001. Three of the top 10 electric peak loads of all time have been reached this summer.
In Con Edison’s service area, overall electric consumption has grown by nearly 20 percent over the past 10 years. Power use continues to rise as customers use more air conditioners, computers, printers, scanners, cell phone chargers, and other equipment both at home and in their offices. In 2004, the company estimated that its customers used more than 8 million televisions, 10.5 million cell phones, 2.5 million personal computers, and 5 million room air conditioners, with customers expected to install an additional 900,000 units over the next five years.
The Con Edison system delivers energy across a network of 92,000 miles of underground and 33,000 miles of overhead wires to approximately 9 million New York City and Westchester County residents. For more information, visit the Web site.
