The state grid operator is admitting it underestimated how quickly the San Antonio region would grow — a missed forecast that’s left it with transmission issues that “could lead to cascading outages” that put the statewide grid at risk. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas this week told regulators its analysis missed the need to boost transmission capacity between the southern and northern regions of the state.
is preparing to cut off power to keep it from overcrowding lines when demand is high and power supply is uneven between the south and north ends of the existing lines. The action, which would curtail about 250 megawatts systemwide, aims to head off emergency conditions like those reached Sept. 6, when the state grid came closer to blackouts than it’s been since the February 2021 winter storm that left millions of people in the dark for days and more than 200 dead.
’s missed forecast: After 2018, some 6,400 megawatts of generation capacity in northern parts of the state was closed and retired — more than it had expected. In the same period, the southern part of the state rapidly added upward of 4,000 megawatts of wind and solar generation. Solar, wind and battery storage systems can be constructed more quickly and at less expense than traditional gas-fired power plants.
Texas utility regulators approve $5 billion