Chris Tomlinson: Texas' electric grid barely survived the deep freeze. Will it survive the Legislature?

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas grid barely powered through the coldest night since 2021 without much generation loss, but the fact that we consider keeping the lights on a major accomplishment acknowledges how broken the grid remains. Every state official should feel ashamed that Texas cannot reliably provide a fundamental public service when needed most. Frigid temperatures caused ERCOT demand to peak Thursday evening at about 75,000 megawatts and spike again when Texans woke up Friday morning. Demand exceeded ERCOT’s forecast of 70,000 megawatts, proving the grid operator’s incompetence in planning again.

We had plenty of power Thursday night when the wind howled, with generators committing 93,000 megawatts and wholesale prices remaining below $50 a megawatt-hour. But when the wind died down before dawn Friday, only 74,000 megawatts were available, and prices spiked to $3,700 until the sun rose. The pre-Christmas cold snap was not nearly as bad as the February 2021 freeze that left hundreds dead and millions without power for four days. But if this polar vortex had brought ice and snow, as in 2021, hundreds might have died last week. Two years after state leaders and the grid failed us, we still don’t have a long-term solution to Texas’ electricity needs. Republicans in the Legislature don’t like a proposal tabled by the Public Utility Commission, but the state’s leaders appear committed to crony capitalism. Entrenched corporations that generate electricity with fossil fuels want new rules that benefit them, and the state’s Republican leadership appears happy to provide. State Sen. Charles Schwertner, chair of the committee overseeing the PUC, wants new natural gas power plants built and has little patience for much else.