Energy demand nearly set a statewide record but backed down late in the day after the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO), which manages the grid, urged its biggest customers to adjust their thermostats to ease the strain on the system.

With temperatures in New York City soaring to a record 95 degrees Fahrenheit , air conditioners were driving power demand close to record levels.

``The dilemma this time of year is that it is an unusually high load,'' NYISO spokesman Ken Klapp said.

Power use in the state peaked between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern time at about 23,700 megawatts (MW), Klapp said, just short of an all- time winter peak of 24,051 MW set during a fierce cold snap in January 2000.

One megawatt is roughly enough to power about 1,000 average homes.

Power demand was expected to ease on Thursday with lower temperatures. New York City was expected to see a high temperature Thursday near 88 degrees.

``The heat (tomorrow) isn't going to be nearly as severe as it was today and the loads will be lower,'' Klapp said.

CONSERVATION PLEAS The state-owned Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), with some of the thinnest power reserves in New York, urged its 1.1 million customers to cut electricity use to after running reserves down to a scant 200 MW.

Last summer, the utility came within less than 100 MW of running out of supply during a heat wave in August.

``We'll have a tight energy supply for summer 2002. This April heat wave should remind everyone just how hot it got last August, and that now is the time to prepare for the upcoming summer and to think about energy conservation,'' LIPA Chairman Richard Kessel said in a statement.

The company said it hopes to add over 400 MW of new generation on Long Island by June, and is in the process of bringing in a new cable to carry up to 330 MW of power across Long Island Sound from Connecticut.

MAINTENANCE OUTAGES Energy supplies are especially thin this time of year since many power plants are shut for spring maintenance.

Utilities typically take advantage of mild spring weather and light electricity demand to conduct maintenance work to ready plants for the tough summer months ahead.

New York, like California, has been scrambling to increase the number of power plants to keep pace with growing energy demand, though New York has not been pushed into rolling blackouts like those seen in California early last summer.

``If nothing breaks, if we don't lose a large generator, we probably won't have to take any more actions,'' Klapp said.

``However if you lose a large generator, especially in the southeastern portion of the state, then we would possibly have to go into a voltage reduction in that area.''

The voltage reduction would likely go unnoticed by the public, but would pad the number of megawatts available to the state in case the power shortage worsens, Klapp said.