Record-Setting Cold Weather Drives Gas Usage

The Madison area, along with much of the Midwest, experienced the coldest temperatures in more than 20 years in late January. The extreme weather led to three of the highest gas usage days in the history of Madison Gas and Electric (MGE).

From Jan. 29 through Jan. 31, 2019, air temperatures plunged as low as -26 degrees. Temperatures failed to reach above -5 degrees for more than two straight days. MGE set an all-time record for gas usage on Tuesday, Jan. 29. MGE's residential and commercial customers did not experience any service interruptions as a result of record gas usage.

The Energy Supply and Trading department actively monitors temperatures, interstate pipeline conditions and system load throughout any cold snap. The team is on-call around-the-clock to ensure natural gas deliveries to MGE's system meet demand.