Arkansas Valley Electric hits new usage peak

BusinessFort SmithNews on the Wire

by The City Wire staff ([email protected]) August 15, 2011 1:05 pm 262 views 

The extreme heat that broiled all of the Fort Smith region in July and August pushed peak electricity usage among Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative customers to 327 megawatts.

Electric usage hit the new peak on Aug. 2, with the previous peak of 288 megawatts set in July 2009, according to AVECC Member Services Manager Greg Davis. According to KFSM 5 News, temperatures during early August were some of the hottest of the heat wave, with Fort Smith reaching a new record of 115 degrees on Aug. 3.

According to the National Weather Service, the Fort Smith region had 35 consecutive days of 100 degrees or higher during July and August. The streak ended — mercifully — on Aug. 8.

Ozark-based Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative Corp. has roughly 56,000 customers in portions of 13 counties in western Arkansas and easter Oklahoma. (See map below.) Davis said a majority of the customers for the not-for-profit electric coop are in Crawford and Sebastian Counties.

Although the system has been tested with the hot weather, Davis said the AVECC distribution system — about 8,100 miles of transmission lines and 33 electrical substations — has 500 megawatts of distribution capacity. And it’s not a cheap rural operation. The value of the system is set at $173 million, according to Davis.

“We have not been forced to aggressively manage peak due to abundant generation and distribution capacity,” Davis explained. “We work closely with our large industrial loads to forecast potential load. This allows us to plan proper generation forecast.”

Davis also said the AVECC works with larger electrical users on controlling usage during peak hours. Smarter usage not only helps the system manage through peaks, but typically saves the customer money, Davis said.

“However, energy consumption continues to rise and forecasts show the need to build new generation.  Therefore we are placing more emphasis on the need for energy efficiency and peak load control as a means to offset or avoid the cost of additional generation,” Davis said.