December Power Demand Hits Record High... Winter Season Surpasses 80,000 MW for the First Time

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Dongwoo Lee] Last month, due to record-breaking cold waves and heavy snowfall, electricity demand surged beyond the average of July and August, reaching an all-time high.

According to the Korea Power Exchange on the 3rd, the average monthly peak power in December last year was 82,176 MW (megawatts), higher than the previous record of 82,007 MW set in July last year.

Compared to December 2021 (78,180 MW), it increased by 5.1%. Peak power refers to the electricity demand at the moment of highest power usage during the day. The average monthly peak power is the average of daily peak power sums over a month, so a higher average monthly peak power indicates greater electricity demand for that month.

December last year was the first time the average monthly peak power in winter exceeded the 80,000 MW mark. Usually, even in January, when electricity demand is highest during winter, peak power remained below 80,000 MW. Until now, winter electricity demand was lower than the summer peak period (July to August), but last year, the average peak power in December was higher than in summer, setting a new record.

It is analyzed that electricity demand broke winter peak records day after day due to the strongest cold wave with a perceived temperature reaching minus 20 degrees Celsius and continuous heavy snowfall in the fourth week of last month. On the 19th of last month, peak power rose to 91,710 MW and stayed above 90,000 MW for five consecutive days. On the 23rd, it soared to 94,509 MW, setting an all-time high.

As electricity demand increased, the supply reserve margin also fell, dropping to the lowest level of 11% this winter on the 21st of last month. The supply reserve margin is the ratio of the supply reserve capacity (the difference between daily power supply capacity and peak power) divided by the peak power; a lower value indicates unstable power supply. Generally, a margin above 10% is considered necessary for stable power supply even in emergencies.

Electricity supply and demand are expected to face a critical point in the third week of January, which is anticipated to be the peak period of electricity demand this winter.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.