Con Edison Sets Record for September Electricity Demand

Con Edison set a record yesterday for September peak electricity demand, reaching a high of 11,389 megawatts at 5 p.m., surpassing the previous record of 11,149 megawatts set at 5 p.m. on September 15, 2005. Peak demand is the average maximum amount of power used by customers during a one-hour period.

The all-time peak demand for electricity use was 13,141 megawatts set on Wednesday, August 2, 2006, at 5 p.m.

In July, the company also set a record for monthly electricity sendout of 6,702,321 megawatt hours, surpassing the previous mark of 6,649,832 used during August 2005. Sendout is the cumulative amount of energy distributed over the company's power grid. The July sendout translates to 6.7 billion kilowatt hours. A typical Con Edison customer in New York City uses approximately 350 kilowatt hours a month.

To help meet ever-growing electricity use, the company is investing more than $1.7 billion this year to upgrade and reinforce its electric delivery system, while continuing to work with the Public Service Commission (PSC), New York City, and others on the development of additional energy efficiency programs for its customers.

Con Edison's service area peak electric use is expected to grow at an annual average rate of 1.2 percent over the next five years, after implementing the company's demand side management (DSM) programs that help customers reduce their consumption of electricity at the time of highest system demand.

The Con Edison system delivers electricity across a network of 94,000 miles of underground and 36,500 miles of overhead wires to approximately 9 million New York City and Westchester County residents.

Con Edison urges all customers to conserve energy and to use air conditioners and other energy-intensive equipment wisely. In addition, the utility advises customers to turn off lights, televisions and computers when not in use, which will help lower their bills. For more energy savings tips, or to learn about the company's free programmable thermostat program, visit the Con Edison Web site at www.coned.com or contact the company at 1-800-75-CONED.

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