B.C. Hydro reports all-time record for peak hourly demand as temperatures plummet across province

B.C.'s hydro and power authority says it set a new all-time record for hourly electricity demand Wednesday as frigid, Arctic temperatures gripped nearly the entire province.

A statement from B.C. Hydro said energy consumptionreached more than10,900 megawatts between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. PT breaking the record set days earlierfor the hour in which customers typically usethe most electricity.

"The extreme cold has British Columbians turning up the heat and as a result we are experiencing record-breaking electricity demand," spokesperson Susie Riederwrote.

"Last night's consumption was more than 15 per cent higher than the peak hourly demand recorded last Wednesday before the cold snap began."

One megawatt of power is equivalent to 1,000 kilowatts. The average single-family detached home in B.C. uses1,279 kilowatt-hourseach month, according to B.C. Hydro.

The utility said the usage was driven by people trying to keep their homes warm.

Temperatures across B.C. are plummeting well below zero aftera mass of Arctic air settled in this week. More than 30 communities from Vancouver Island to the Okanagan and northern B.C. set new records for daily minimum temperatures.

The Puntzi Lakearea west of Williams Lake was the coldest place in the province at48.1 C, followed by Fort Nelson at 43.5 C.

Fort St. John and Dawson Creek tied for third at42.5 C.

Environment Canada said the cold weather is expected to start warming up in some places on Thursday, but the transition will be slow.

"Temperatures will gradually rise this afternoon for most regions," read an alert from the agency.

The previous record was 10,800megawatts during the snowstorm on Monday.

That storm brought up to 30 centimetres of snow to parts of Vancouver Island and as much as 25 centimetres to the Lower Mainland, while temperatures in northern B.C. sank todangerous levels as low as40 C.

Earlier this month, B.C. Hydro released a report that found the average number of customers affected by a winter holiday storm has risensubstantially in the last year compared to the previous five.

Data showedstorms affected more than 45,000 people between 2012 and 2016, but that number shot up to more than 300,000 between 2017 and 2022.