Advanced Energy Perspectives

In the winter of 2021, Texas experienced firsthand the dangers of an electric grid dependent on the seamless functioning of a small number of large, weather-vulnerable generation sources. The inability to meet the energy needs of over 70% of the state amid a winter weather crisis signals the system’s clear need for reform; so, too, the unseasonable heat waves that hit Texas this spring, which pushed grid power to its limits. With large traditional power plants taking at least six years to become operational, Texans need adaptive solutions that will meet their needs today. In the face of rapidly growing electricity demand, uncertain forecasting, and aging infrastructure, a new TAEBA report demonstrates the power of distributed energy resources as clean, low cost, and resilient tools poised to bring Texas into the 21^st century of electricity provision.

It was a dark and stormy session for the Texas legislature, dominated by electric power issues surfaced by Winter Storm Uri. With the Texas electricity system under more scrutiny – and more up for grabs – than at any time since restructuring in 1999, we at the Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA) had our hands full. But when the dust settled and the legislature gaveled out on Memorial Day, the outcome for advanced energy was net positive – even though the legislature missed a golden opportunity to enhance grid resilience with distributed energy resources.

Texas’ February winter weather emergency dominated energy news nationwide. Now it’s dominating proposals in the Texas legislature. Following historic electricity outages, it’s no surprise grid reliability issues have come to the forefront of lawmakers’ priority list, with proposed legislation focusing on everything from distributed energy resources to various commission reforms. We turned to AEE’s PowerSuite to parse out which bills at play in the Lone Star State are generating the most buzz and share the measures we’re keeping our eyes on.

Texas is in the midst of a severe and historic winter weather event, which has led to the worst outages the state has experienced in decades. With over 4 million Texans losing power, all eyes are on the state’s grid manager and market operator, Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), and market participants like power plant owners and operators, demand side resources, and other grid assets as they work around the clock to restore the grid to normal operating conditions. Defenders of the energy status quo are also using the occasion to cast doubt on advanced energy technologies – especially wind power, on which Texas is a national leader. But they’ve got it exactly backwards. The troubles in Texas point to the need for more advanced energy, not less.