Manitoba sets all-time record for electricity use

The extreme winter weather has resulted in an all-time record in the province for energy use, says Manitoba Hydro.

While staying indoors to beat the bitter cold, Manitobans used an unprecedented peak load of 4,924 megawatts of electricity Wednesday morning.

That eclipses the previous record of 4,801 megawatts registered in January 2017.

Hydro spokesman Bruce Owen said Thursday the utility is ‘winter-peaking’ – the highest amount of use each year happens in January.

Hydro’s systems, he said, are designed and built to meet growing demands on electricity, especially in such extreme weather.

Owen said the new record comes during a work week, as more people and businesses rely on a stable supply of electricity.

Even with the frigid weather, Manitoba’s rivers continue to flow, and over 95 per cent of Wednesday’s record load came from hydroelectric generation.

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