AUSTIN, Texas — A new report from energy experts at The University of Texas at Austin is revealing more information about what caused the power outages during the February winter storms.
The report was compiled by 12 faculty and researchers from UT and was reviewed by the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
Researchers say they found that a majority of power plants that experienced outages and deratings during the storms did so at temperatures above their reported minimum temperature ratings. The researchers also said the electricity issues these outages caused were worsened by failures within the state’s natural gas system, which they say began in the Permian Basin days prior to ERCOT calling for blackouts.
During the winter storm, Texas, which normally exports 4 to 6 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, reached almost zero pipeline net exports, the report found. This means delivery of natural gas fell short of the total demand needed for heating and power generation, prolonging outages.
“The state’s natural gas infrastructure was probably stressed more than any time in history,” said Carey King, assistant director and research scientist at UT’s Energy Institute. “This isn’t the only time natural gas has constrained electricity generation – it happened in other recent blackouts (1989 and 2011) – but this time was unique. The system was stressed to its absolute maximum capability.”
The report also analyzed the effectiveness of financial mitigation steps taken by state regulators during the storm.
According to the report, the PUCT decision to fix the price at $9,000 per megawatt-hour, independent of other consequences, possibly reduced wholesale electricity costs by $5 billion on Feb.18 and Feb. 19. However, researchers say ERCOT’s Emergency Responsive Service program, which should have been deployed in case of an electric grid emergency, did not function as planned.
“It seems inconsistent that critical infrastructure should also voluntarily allow themselves to be turned off when they are needed most,” said Joshua D. Rhodes, a research associate in mechanical engineering and one of the co-authors of the report.
Overall, the report states that the February blackouts were in part caused by inadequate weatherization of power generators in Texas and a strained natural gas system.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: