UniSource Energy Services is joining other Arizona utilities in calling for energy conservation from 3-8 p.m. today 8/18/20 to ease a regional energy shortage amid extremely high temperatures throughout the southwestern United States.

Although UniSource expects to have enough energy on hand to serve our customers, the company is joining Arizona Public Service, Tucson Electric Power and TRICO in calling for conservation between 3-8 p.m. today to limit the strain on the regional grid. A similar call may be issued tomorrow and through the rest of the week if similar pressures persist.

Electric customers can reduce energy use by following these measures:

·       Turn up your thermostat to 78 or higher as you can safely tolerate.

·       Avoid using non-essential appliances and equipment.

·       Adjust timers to ensure that pool pumps operate at night, not during the day.

·       Avoiding use of electric laundry dryers or other appliances during the day that can raise the interior temperature of your home or business.

·       Using shades, blinds or curtains to keep sunlight out, especially during the afternoon in rooms facing west.

Additional conservation tips are available online at uesaz.com/tips/.

UniSource appreciates the patience and cooperation of its customers as it works to ensure adequate regional energy supplies. California residents have been subject to rolling blackouts and calls for energy conservation amid blazing heat, power plant outages and reduced renewable energy output, a situation described Monday as a “perfect storm” by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), which oversees that state’s electric grid. These conditions have limited supplies and increased prices on the wholesale energy market in both California and Arizona. UniSource and other Arizona utilities rely on that market to supplement the resources we’ve secured to serve our own customers’ energy needs.

“We’re well prepared to serve customers’ energy needs, but the situation in California does increase the risk associated with an outage of one or more generating units, a key transmission line or other contingencies,” said Erik Bakken, Vice President of System Operations and Energy Resources. “We’re watching our system closely and making sure we’re ready to respond immediately to any issues that do arise.”

UniSource provides electric service to more than 96,000 customers in Mohave and Santa Cruz counties. The company also provides natural gas to more than 160,000 customers in northern and southern Arizona. For more information about UniSource, visit uesaz.com. UniSource and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis, Inc., which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. To learn more, visit fortisinc.com.