As a record-breaking heatwave has ripped through Texas, it has also had a drastic effect on the independent power grid that runs our state. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has asked residents state-wide to conserve over eight times in the past month. Past malfunctions from the Texas energy grid have left many people wondering: is the state power grid ready for a harsh winter?
The grid’s readiness does not appear promising as we have seen temperatures climb year after year and the climate changing even more so as the years pass. The winter storm in 2021, named Uri, killed 210 people, according to the Comptroller’s Office, and we narrowly avoided a catastrophic failure that would have seen a total blackout state-wide.
In addition, supply chains, which were already in turmoil because of the COVID-19 pandemic, suffered more disruption due to Winter Storm Uri. This setback affected Texas chemical plants, which make up nearly 75% of U.S. chemical production and contribute to manufacturing ingredients necessary for disinfectants, plastic bottles, fertilizers, pesticides and packaging. The freezing temperatures and blackouts damaged equipment in those plants, further slowing supply lines.
Chemical, plastic and rubber exports — accounting for almost 17% of Texas exports during the three months prior to the winter storm — saw their inflation-adjusted value decrease by more than 20% in Feb. 2021. Additionally, supply chains stumbled because goods could not be transported by truck or rail in such dire weather conditions.
All of this can be partly attributed to the earlier-mentioned independence of our grid. According to the Comptroller’s Office, Texas has a unique place as “the only state in the continental United States that is not substantially interconnected with either the Eastern Interconnection or the Western Interconnection.” That means that we have no backups or support for when our grid has an unusually increased load, as shown in a report that ERCOT paid Riot, a Bitcoin miner, $31.7 million in taxpayer funds to lessen the stress on the grid.
As of current, there are worries of controlled blackouts during the fall season, when it should be cooler and less humid than in the summer, meaning that there is doubt about ERCOT being able to maintain the grid once winter hits. The good news is that action taken by the PUC forced generators to be weatherized by Dec. 1, 2021. However, not much else has reportedly been done yet.
As winter approaches, many question if their access to electricity will be interrupted. For too long, Texans have settled for a power grid that works for profit and not one that works for the good of the state. It is time that ERCOT acts for the people and is 100% transparent to ensure the safety of those they service and connect to the eastern/western interconnections to ensure adequate backups are available.
