and affirmed that the Public Utility Commission did not exceed its authority when it adjusted electricity pricing during the February 2021 winter storm that nearly caused the state's power grid to collapse.
The PUC had determined that ERCOT's complex pricing formula was not accurately signaling the grid's urgent need for more power as record low temperatures caused generation equipment to freeze and fail. With the grid on the brink of a complete blackout, the PUC issued orders directing ERCOT to manually set prices at the maximum allowable level.Luminant sued the PUC, and an appeals court agreed that the orders violated the state's policy favoring competitive pricing over regulation.
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