Wednesday, January 29, 2003

Frigid weather caused record natural gas usage

The arctic blast that sent temperatures plummeting in Georgia this past week resulted in a new Atlanta Gas Light Company (AGLC) recordfor natural gas usage.

With temperatures hovering around 8 degrees and a wind chill of minus 15 on Friday, Jan. 24, Georgians used a peak 2.16 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas. The previous record was 2.04 Bcf set on Feb. 4, 1996. The average daily winter use is 1.5 Bcf.

"While a segment of this increased usage can be attributed to the growth of the number of natural gas customers in Georgia since 1996, Friday was the coldest weather we have had in seven years," said Isaac Blythers, president of AGLC. "The priority for most people was staying warm."

Natural gas is used to heat 85 percent of homes in Georgia. Homes that use electricity for heat also depend indirectly on natural gas, which fuels electricity-generating plants in Georgia.

Anticipating the higher demand, AGLC was ready with triple the staff and trucks on evening shifts. Blythers said 150 service representatives and about 112 trucks responded to customer requests and emergencies.

At the same time, pressure control operators and other field personnel were busy around the clock opening and closing valves to keep the system's pressure balanced.

Due to the heavy use, there was a temporary outage Friday because of lost pressure in the pipelines, but that affected only about 200 customers, less than a tenth of one percent of AGLC's 1.5 million customers. Service was quickly restored.

Customers who experience problems with their natural gas heat should call AGLC at 770-907-4231 in the metro Atlanta area, or 1-877-427-4321 outside the metro area.

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