By Scott DiSavino
July 30 (Reuters) - The Texas power grid operator forecast demand would reach its highest this year on Friday as homes and businesses crank up air conditioners to escape a lingering heatwave.
The United States has been beset by several extreme weather events this year, including February's freeze in Texas that knocked out power to millions and this summer's record heat in the Pacific Northwest.
High temperatures in Dallas were expected to reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) on Friday before easing to 93 F on Monday, according to AccuWeather. The city's normal high is 97 F at this time of year.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates most of the state's grid, projected power use will reach 73,260 megawatts (MW) on Friday.
That would top the year's current high of 72,856 MW on Monday, but would fall short of the grid's all-time high of 74,820 MW in August 2019. One megawatt can power around 200 homes in the summer.
Extreme weather reminds Texans of the February freeze when millions were left without power, water and heat for days during a deadly storm as ERCOT scrambled to prevent an uncontrolled collapse of the grid after an unusually large amount of generation shut down due to freezing natural gas pipes.
ERCOT said on its website there was enough generation available to meet current demand on Friday and operating conditions were normal.
While real-time power prices were only in the $30s per megawatt hour (MWh) so far on Friday, traders noted prices should rise as temperatures climb.
Day-ahead prices for Friday traded over $210/MWh for two hours.
On-peak power at the ERCOT North hub , which includes Dallas, averaged $204/MWh so far in 2021 due primarily to price spikes over $8000 during the February freeze.
That compares with an average of $26/MWh in 2020.
(Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by Edmund Blair)