Demand for power expected to peak on Tuesday and Wednesday
Electricity demand in Greece is expected to hit a new record on Tuesday and Wednesday, putting fresh pressure on electricity rates and posing even greater challenges for the transmission and network system operators (ADMIE and DEDDIE), as the third heatwave finds infrastructure strained by temperatures which have remained higher than usual for the time of year for almost two weeks.
Electricity demand rose last week by 12% following an even bigger increase of 14% the week before, hitting a two-year high. Prices in the wholesale market followed a similar course, which increased by 8.33% following an increase of 6.74% in the previous week, recording the highest price at 139.8 euros per megawatt-hour on Friday. On the same day, the highest loads were also recorded, at 10,500 MW, a record that is expected to be broken on Tuesday as demand, according to the estimates of ADMIE officials, is expected to approach 11,000 MW and on Wednesday it will probably exceed it.
Over the weekend, demand dropped to 5,000-6,000 MW during the midday peak as citizens headed to the beaches fore respite, and began to rise gradually from 8 p.m. as air conditioners restarted at full blast to peak at 10 p.m. at 8,279 MW on Saturday and 8,261 MW on Sunday. On Monday demand peaked at 3 p.m. at 10,345 MW.
The stability of the system was ensured during peak hours by increasing the share of fossil fuels (natural gas and lignite) after the lack of wind limited the production of RES to 19%. The share of natural gas rose during peak hours to 46% and lignite to 20%, while at average levels during the day it moved to 39.5% and 8.4% respectively. The share of RES was limited to 19% on Monday, while imports accounted for 11% and hydroelectric for 6.1%.
Throughout the prolonged heatwave, all thermal units (natural gas and lignite) are working, including the Ptolemaida 5 (PPC) and Agios Nikolaos (Mytilineos) plants which are in trial operation, with the exception of two units at Agios Dimitrios that come in and out due to minor damage. ADMIE assures, however, that the system will not face sufficiency problems, except for some exceptional unforeseen circumstances. ADMIE’s staff has started to check the system’s lines with on-site visits.
