Have you ever found yourself feeling like this past winter was tougher to handle then previous years? That’s because it’s true! According to the Heating Degree Day Report, Southwestern Pennsylvania experienced a winter that was 15% colder than 2017 and 30% colder than 2016.
For those who may not be familiar with the term “Heating Degree Day” (HDD) it is the measurement designed to quantify the demand for energy needed to heat a building. It is the number of degrees that a day’s average temperature is below 65o Fahrenheit (18o Celsius), 65 is the temperature below which buildings need to be heated.
Figure 1 below shows a comparison of the last three winters (HDD)
It’s clear that we have seen the heating season get colder and colder over the past three years.
Figure 2 depicts how energy is consumed in Pennsylvania homes over the course of a year.
So what does this all mean for the energy industry? The answer is easy, MORE HEAT! And that heat is generated from a number of different energy sources.
Figure 3 is an example of how we source heat throughout Pennsylvania.
Sources:
https://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/reports/2009/state_briefs/pdf/PA.pdf
