SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – Three of the largest electricity suppliers in the Ozarks region are asking customers to save energy when possible due to the limited supply of natural gas in cold weather.
Liberty Utilities was followed on Sunday by Springfield City Utilities and White River Valley Electric Company. Electricity suppliers say natural gas has reached maximum demand during the cold. Natural gas wells freeze in southwest Missouri, leading to a limited supply.
“This is an unprecedented weather event that is impacting not only all of our customers, but also our Midwest natural gas service customers,” said Gary Gibson, CEO and CEO of City Utilities in Springfield. every service we offer is to keep our customers safe and make sure we do everything we can during this severe winter event. ”
“Midwest electricity suppliers are seeing unprecedented demand on the grid due to extreme weather conditions and rising natural gas prices,” the White River Valley Electric Company said in a press release.
“We know energy conservation at this time can be inconvenient, and we apologize for that,” said Tim Wilson, Liberty’s vice president of electrical operations. “We are so grateful to our customers for their help in reducing energy consumption. This will help us maintain services to homes, businesses and critical facilities in these exceptional weather conditions. Our crews work non-stop to keep our systems safe and operational. We will continue to provide updates to our customers throughout this event. ”
Springfield City Utilities offers the following recommendations to help save energy:
- Reduce the thermostat to at least 2 degrees from the normal setting. 68 degrees is the suggested average setting for winter.
- Limit the use of natural gas fireplaces.
- Limit the use of connected electric heaters.
- Reduce the water heater temperature setting.
- Look for other opportunities in your home to reduce your electricity and gas consumption in this short period of time.
White River Valley Electric specifically asks customers to reduce electricity consumption during peak hours 6-10 am and 4-8 pm
The company also offers the following tips for Branson customers to reduce electricity:
- Rotate and hold the thermostat down 2-3 degrees.
- Minimize the use of major appliances at the same time.
- Use space heaters sparingly.
- Seal around sliding doors and windows
- Replace the oven filters.
- Switch off the thermostats on the electric water heaters.
- Turn off the lights and unplug small appliances that are not in use.
Liberty Utilities issued a peak notice from 6 pm Sunday until midnight on Tuesday. Customers are asked to limit use between 6:00 – 10:00 and 16:00 – 19:00
The company offered the following energy-saving recommendations:
- Set the thermostats to 65 degrees or as low as comfortable. Elderly people with complicated medical conditions should not lower their thermostat.
- Turn off and disconnect computers, monitors, chargers, printers, and televisions during periods of inactivity.
- Turn off non-essential lights.
- Postpones all non-essential energy consumption.
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