Show Notes
Utilities have traditionally planned around a single annual peak demand, but changing customer behavior, increased electrification, and extreme weather are creating systems with both winter and summer peaks of similar impact. This shift introduces new planning challenges, as traditional top-down forecasting can miss how customer-level behaviors like EV charging and electrified heating create synchronized demand spikes. Dual peaks raise the risk of misallocated infrastructure investments, operational strain, and reliability issues if utilities plan for the wrong scenario. The discussion highlights how bottom-up, scenario-based forecasting can help utilities better prepare for multiple potential peak conditions and evolving grid demands.
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