They also argued that ERCOT could still meet its goals with a smaller fee increase. “The direction I’m coming at this from is I don’t like rate shock.”Ĭritics of the increase had called for more transparency from ERCOT on how the money would be spent. “It is important for ERCOT to look out into the future to have stability,” Commissioner Will McAdams said. Public Utility Commissioners, who set regulations for electricity, decided against giving ERCOT all that it initially asked for, approving a slightly smaller fee increase and budget than the organization requested. ERCOT planned to grow its 843-person staff by 171 positions, adding attorneys, system operators and communications experts.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas needs more money to comply with new regulations, hire more employees and fight legal challenges, its lawyers wrote in state filings. State regulators at the Public Utility Commission approved the budget increase Thursday in a 4-0 vote. The fee increase will cost the average residential customer less than 20 cents a month, according to the operator. Much of that will come from charging higher fees to companies that sell power to consumers. The Texas electric grid operator’s budget will grow 40% next year, adding nearly $119 million to its current $287 million budget. “And they are very, very positive implications.'Texas power grid operator approved for a 40% budget increase' was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans - and engages with them - about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. “If we can integrate these resources in a cost-effective way, which is entirely possible, there’s just huge implications for the future of our state and our economy,” Lewin said. “You want a grid that is bigger than the weather.”Įnergy efficiency, smart metering and improved energy storage technology could also help ensure grid reliability while allowing the amount of low-cost renewable power on the grid to grow. “You’ve got to have the ability to move the clean electrons to market,” Michael Webber, a mechanical engineering professor at UT Austin, said recently. A larger power grid, they say, could import more renewable energy from places farther away. Others have proposed connecting the Texas grid to other grids to help ensure reliability without contributing to more emissions. Dan Patrick recently told reporters in Houston. “If we can’t get an incentive program to attract investors to build, then the state will have to build ourselves,” Lt. Some even think the state should play a more active role in building plants.

Texas political leaders have created policies to incentivize the building of more natural gas power plants to be on hand during those times. Energy demand is also typically lower on Sundays, so robust wind and solar generation will make up an even larger share of the power that is online.Įnergy and climate change experts say the challenge is to continue integrating renewable power while ensuring electric reliability at times when weather conditions are not amenable. These grid-wide wind and solar records are often set in Texas when weather conditions are just right for renewables. “They know they can buy power at those prices, and if it’s zero, they know they can obviously sell it quite cheaply to their customers and still make a profit.” The challenge ahead That should, eventually, help bring electricity bills down for consumers, he said.Įlectric utilities and retail electric providers “are paying very close attention,” Lewin said. Lewin said there were times Sunday when renewable energy was also trading for free on the Texas grid thanks to federal tax incentives.

“I think we’re rapidly moving toward a world - we might already be in it - where a vast majority of the hours are supplied mostly by renewables at very very low prices,” Doug Lewin, author of the Texas Energy and Power Newsletter, said. It will also become ever-more common as additional solar, wind and battery-storage facilities are added to the state grid. That lower emissions profile is a positive sign for efforts to combat climate change. And that's not the only record the state energy system broke: When you add nuclear power generation into the mix, about 83% of the electricity used Sunday came from non-carbon-emitting sources. Over 70% of the energy Texans used Sunday came from wind and solar power - a record for the state power grid.

Austin power grids