Here are the key takeaways from Texas rolling blackouts:
- The Weather Channel Warns Of “Dangerous” Cold Temperatures
- Southwest Power Pool Says 17 States Limiting Energy Usage
- 3.368 million Texans Without Power
- Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Calls Up Texas Army National Guard
- Oncor Electric Delivery Continues To Warn About Extended “Controlled Outages”
- Texas Gov. Greg Abbott States Power Grid Not Compromised
- Power Crisis Hits Texas And 13 Other States
- Southwest Power Pool Declares Energy Emergency Alert Level 3
- Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner Warns Of More Blackouts
- Houston Mayor Sylvester Suspends Air Travel In Houston
- ERCOT Wholesale Electricity Prices Plunged From Cap Of $9k per megawatt-hour to around $2.5k
- Oncor Electric Delivery Extends Rolling Blackouts
- 2.7 Million Texans Without Power
- ERCOT Wholesale Electricity Prices Exceed $9k per megawatt-hour
Update ( 1755 ET): While millions of Texans are without power heading into Monday evening, the power grid may be strained once more as temperatures could reach “dangerous levels,” according to The Weather Channel.
More record lows are expected for Tuesday morning across Texas. If ERCOT doesn’t secure additional power generation – more blackouts may occur.
Update ( 1612 ET): The Southwest Power Pool (SSP), which manages the electric grid and wholesale power market for the central US, including Kansas, Oklahoma, portions of New Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Missouri, Minnesota, Iowa, Wyoming, and Nebraska, released an update Monday afternoon saying 17 states have “curtailed energy usage to balance supply and demand.”
Frigid air continues to pour into the central US, overwhelming power grids, forcing operators to implement rolling blackouts like a third world country.
Update (1605 ET): CBS Austin’s Melanie Torre reports Gov. Greg Abbott has called up the Texas Army National Guard “to conduct welfare checks and to assist local authorities in transitioning Texans in need to one of the 135 local warming centers across Texas.”
While Abbott said earlier the “Texas power grid has not been compromised,” we find that hard to believe as the number of customers without power has significantly jumped 3.368 million.
Update (1534 ET): Oncor Electric Delivery, Texas’ largest transmission and electric distribution utility, published another statement on its Twitter account detailing how “unprecedented shortfall of electric generation” will continue to extend “controlled outages” due to “emergency grid conditions & severe cold weather.”
Full statement:
The TX power system is currently facing an unprecedented shortfall of electric generation. @ERCOT_ISO has requested Oncor & utilities across TX to implement controlled power outages to reduce high demand & protect the integrity of the electric grid.
The length of these controlled outages have been significantly extended due to current emergency grid conditions & severe cold weather. These outages are taking place across the service territory & ERCOT has said they could be required through Tues
We are asking all Oncor customers to be prepared to be without power for an extended period of time.
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Update (1500 ET): Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted around 1431 ET, indicating that he’s been communicating with major power grid operators this afternoon and will provide an update “shortly.”
“The Texas power grid has not been compromised. The ability of some companies that generate the power has been frozen. This includes the natural gas & coal generators. They are working to get generation back on line. ERCOT & PUC are prioritizing residential consumers,” said Abbott.
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