PSE&G Asks Consumers to Conserve Energy in Heat Wave

NEWARK, N.J., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Public Service Electric and Gas (PSE&G), New Jersey's largest utility, and PJM Interconnection, the electric grid operator for 13 states and the District of Columbia, are asking consumers to conserve electricity today while the region continues in the grip of a stifling heat wave.

According to PJM, demand for electricity is expected to increase as the excessive heat and humidity continue.  PSE&G and PJM are taking precautionary measures to ensure the reliability of the transmission system and adequate power supplies.

Customers are asked to conserve electricity, if health permits, especially between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. when demand typically peaks. Yesterday, PSE&G's preliminary peak demand for electricity, set at 5 p.m., was 10,804 megawatts, which is the highest so far this summer but still shy of the all-time peak demand of 11,108 megawatts set on August 2, 2006.

PSE&G will begin air conditioning cycling this afternoon. About 100,000 residential and small-business customers have signed up for this program, which allows the utility to regulate central air conditioners via a small device on each unit. When PJM issues its request to conserve, a microwave signal instructs each air conditioner to cycle off more often. For example, an AC unit that was running for 40 minutes an hour may drop to 20 minutes. The utility can shed as much as 65 megawatts of power – the amount of energy consumed by about 52,000 homes.

PSE&G offers the following conservation tips:

• Turn off everything you're not using; lights, TVs, computers, etc. Use dimmers, timers and motion detectors on indoor and outdoor lighting.
• Close blinds, shades and draperies facing the sun to keep the sun's heat out and help fans and air conditioners cool more efficiently.
• Close doors leading to uncooled parts of your home.  With central air, close off vents to unused rooms.
• Delay heat-producing tasks such as washing and drying laundry or dishes until later in the day, and wait until load is full.
• Refrain from using nonessential appliances. Unplug or use only when necessary an extra refrigerator in your garage.  Also, customers should consider setting their air conditioners to 78 degrees, health permitting.

To report a power outage, call PSE&G's Customer Service line: 1-800-436-PSEG. You can also report an outage online by logging into My Account at pseg.com.

During this extreme weather, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/psegoutageinfo for ongoing information.

Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) is New Jersey's oldest and largest regulated gas and electric delivery utility, serving nearly three-quarters of the state's population. PSE&G recently received the ReliabilityOne Award for superior electric system reliability in the Mid-Atlantic Region. PSE&G is a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (PSEG) (NYSE: PEG), a diversified energy company (www.pseg.com).

Want to know what's new at PSEG? Go to www.pseg.com/getnews and sign up to have our press releases and weekly environmental commentaries sent right to your inbox.

SOURCE Public Service Electric & Gas Company (PSE&G)

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