Texas leads the state in energy production, including renewable energy.
So why can’t residents be assured that the lights will stay on?
Twice this week, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas has issued electricity conservation appeals asking state residents to reduce their energy use to stave off possible blackouts or brownouts. With a statewide heat wave raising air-conditioning use, ERCOT warned that the demand for electricity could exceed utility companies’ ability to deliver it.
Fortunately, the electric grid largely has been able to meet the demand. ERCOT officials have said much of the responsibility for the possible crisis was old coal- and oil-burning generators that no longer run at optimum capacity. Another factor is that the heat wave has come with still winds, which also reduced wind turbines’ ability to generate power.
In many cases, however, the problem lies with the council itself.
The growing diversity of energy sources in Texas is a great asset. Solar power can be optimized on sunny days while wind power can take advantage of breezy conditions. Natural-gas turbines can run as long as fuel is available.
Moreover, greater use of renewable energy should help consumers in the long run, especially in times of high fuel prices such as those we are enduring at present. The sun and wind don’t cost anything, and thus should become more cost-effective as battery and delivery systems become more efficient.
But while ERCOT officials are loath to admit it, those delivery systems could be our greatest problem.
Observers have noted that one of the state’s regions most at risk to go dark during the heat wave is the Rio GrandeValley, even though some of the state’s — and nation’s — wind farms are just north of here in Willacy, Kenedy and Brooks counties.
However, even as power generation continues to increase, transmission lines to deliver that power to our communities hasn’t kept up. Enough electricity might be generated to keep all our air-conditioners running, but there aren’t enough transmission lines to get it here.
ERCOT CEO Brad Jones last year admitted that the Valley had largely been passed over for electrical grid improvements for some 15 years.
The problem is hardly new. Pretty much every year the council issues warnings like those posted this week. And every year not enough is done to lessen the strain for the following year.
News reports last year noted that work had been halted on several new electrical generation projects in Texas because ERCOT’s grid couldn’t move any of the electricity those projects might have created.
Texas is expected to continue as one of the country’s leaders in population growth. Our power grid must keep up with that growth.
It appears that ERCOT, made up of political appointees by the governor, sees itself primarily as a regulatory agency, overseeing the operation of power generators. In reality, that’s the job of the Texas Public Utility Commission. ERCOT is in charge of managing our power grid and ensuring that our lights stay on when needed.
The council needs to spend less time telling us to use less energy, and more time making existing energy sources more available to Texans’ homes.
