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A megawatt-hour (MWh) is a unit used to measure a large amount of energy.
Think of it as the total energy produced or consumed when one megawatt of power is sustained for a full hour. It's a key measurement in the energy industry, from power plants to the electric grid.
It's important to distinguish between power and energy.
Power, measured in megawatts (MW), is the rate at which energy is used.
Energy, measured in megawatt-hours (MWh), is the total amount used over time.
One megawatt-hour is a substantial amount of energy, equivalent to:
Because it represents such a large quantity, the MWh is the standard unit for measuring energy at the utility scale.
While your home electricity bill uses kilowatt-hours (kWh), utility companies and power plants measure energy generation and transmission in megawatt-hours (MWh).
The connection is simple:
1 MWh is equal to 1,000 kWh.
To put this in perspective, the average U.S. home uses about 10.6 MWh of electricity per year.
This highlights the scale of the MWh and its role in tracking the massive flow of energy from significant sources, like wind farms or nuclear reactors, to entire cities and communities.
The megawatt-hour is the primary unit for billing, trading, and planning in the wholesale electricity industry. Its applications are critical for maintaining a stable and efficient power grid.
For example, MWh is used to measure:
This standardized metric allows investors, grid operators, and regulators to accurately evaluate energy assets and ensure grid reliability.