Nearly two-thirds of that stilled generation was thermal, while 38 . In the immediate aftermath of the storm, Gov. SB 3 gives certain state agencies rulemaking authority, notably the PUC, meaning the bill’s implementation will depend on the adopted rules. FN. Generator owners should identify and communicate the reliability risk of their natural gas fuel contracts to their Balancing Authority by winter 2021/22. A flurry of lawsuits were filed against ERCOT following the late-February winter storm that caused almost 70% of its . LBB fiscal note analysis states, “The bill enables ERCOT to issue debt obligations to finance substantial balances owed by wholesale market participants.”, Texas lawmakers were swift to respond to the aftermath of Winter Storm Uri. As the updated death toll from February's winter storm reached 111 deaths last week, the severity of its full force has . The 2021 Texas power crisis: A timeline | Choose Energy® Christopher T M Clack . All rights reserved. Read about it on our website. Texas Winter Storm Uri 2021. Winter Storm Uri also caused a reduction of more than half of daily natural gas production, including the production necessary to keep many gas-fired power plants operational. Fast forward to today, and ERCOT manages the flow of electric power to 90% of Texans, scheduling power on an electric grid that connects more than 46,500 miles (74,834 km) of transmission lines and over 680 generation units. SB 3 also requires certain energy facilities in Texas to weatherize (i.e., make the preparations necessary to maintain electric service during extreme weather conditions, including severe winter storms). By Rebecca Aguilar. Source: Texas Legislature Online, HB 1520, likewise, enables gas utilities to use securitization to recoup extraordinary costs incurred due to the winter storm. The Great Winter Storm of 2021 will serve as an infamous reminder of how important electricity is to our economy, and to our high . FEBRUARY 21: A view of high voltage transmission towers on February 21, 2021 . A new five-member committee under SB 3 will identify critical infrastructure sources in Texas and map the state’s electricity supply chain, which includes all natural gas facilities and practices required for electric generation facilities to maintain service for Texans. PDF Fostering resiliency with good market design: Lessons from ... By the regular legislative session’s end in May 2021, they had passed laws that overhauled the structure of electric power regulatory entities, made changes to the electric market itself to reduce the risk of future disruptions and tempered the financial fallout. ERCOT hourly electricity by fuel, Feb. 3-16, 2021, MWh. That changed in late February after Winter Storm Uri exposed critical weaknesses in the state’s power grid and its regulatory framework. If you were without power at any point during the winter storm, the My Usage screen interprets that as a time when meter readings were unavailable. Despite the preparation notices and the resulting actions by electric and gas utilities and natural gas producers and pipelines to prepare for the event, Winter Storm Uri resulted in the largest controlled load shed and third-largest loss of megawatts or load in US history. Review of Communications for the Electric Market. February 3 ERCOT meteorologist warns Market Participants and the public of coldest weather of the year. The extreme cold required natural gas wells and processing facilities to shut-in. SB 3, the 87th Legislature’s omnibus storm response legislation, consolidates several bills that did not pass on their own, such as House Bill (HB) 12, and enacts a range of reforms to Texas’ electric power industry. If you registered but did not receive a link to participate in the webinar, please email Ryan Frome. The bill requires DPS to send an alert to designated media outlets, such as radio and TV stations, informing electricity customers that they may experience a power outage. Weather comparisons between severe winter storms in 2011 vs. 2021. The extreme cold triggered the loss of 61,800 megawatts of electric generation when more than 1,000 generating units were forced offline, derated, or failed to start on more than 4,000 occasions over the course of the event. Source: Texas Legislature Online. Keywords: ERCOT; Texas grid Created Date: 2/16/2021 9:38:06 AM Facilities directed to weatherize include electric generation facilities, transmission providers, certain natural gas facilities and pipelines and water utilities. The report also lists 14 other preliminary recommendations, including addressing effects of cold weather on mechanical fatigue, real-time monitoring of gas well-heads, emergency response centers for severe weather events, rapidly deploying demand response, and retail incentives for energy efficiency improvements. PUC Details Efforts Related To Winter Storm Grid Event, PUC Names Director of ERCOT, Inc. More than two out of three Texans - 69% - lost electricity at some point during Winter Storm Uri last month for an average of 42 hours, while almost half - 49% - lost access to running water for an average of more than two . Temperatures plummeted down to 0 degrees and wind chill to -13. Winter storm Uri has brought historic cold weather and power outages to Texas as storms have swept across 26 . Copyright © - Public Utility Commission of Texas, Issues Related to the State of Disaster for the February 2021 Winter Weather Event, Investigation Regarding the February 2021 Winter Weather Event, Review of Wholesale - Indexed Products for Compliance with Customer Protection Rules for Retail Electric Service, Rulemaking to Establish Weatherization Standards, Review of 16 TAC §25.53 Relating to Electric Service Emergency Operations Plans, Review of the ERCOT Scarcity Pricing Mechanism, Review of Critical Load Standards and Processes. Winter Reliability Assessment 4 About this Assessment NER's 2020-2021 Winter Reliability Assessment (WRA) identifies, assesses, and reports on areas of concern regarding the reliability of the North American BPS for the upcoming winter season. NERC should revise its reliability standards to require: Generation owners to identify and protect critical components from cold weather by winter 2023/24, build new or retrofit existing generators to operate in weather based on extreme temperature and weather data and account for effects of precipitation and wind by winter 2023/24, provide annual training on winterization by winter 2022/23, protect critical natural gas infrastructure from load shedding by winter 2023/24, and prohibit use of critical natural gas infrastructure loads for demand response by winter 2022/23. Over the course of her 35-year career in the electric utility industry, Beth Garza has held a variety of leadership roles in generation and transmission planning, system operations, regulatory . Prior to this measure, ERCOT was governed by a board of directors with 16 members — eight members representing different electric industry segments; three “ex officio” members (who served on the board as a result of other official positions they held); and five members unaffiliated with any electric industry segments. Note: This does not represent an exhaustive list. A Houston-area couple has filed the first lawsuit against the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and CenterPoint Energy, asserting its negligence in failing to prepare for the winter storm that left millions without power and nearly 80 dead.. Almost 70% Of ERCOT Customers Lost Power During Winter Storm, Study Finds. ERCOT Interim CEO In North Texas To 'Rebuild Trust' After February Storm-Related Power Outages By Erin Jones November 8, 2021 at 9:23 pm Filed Under: DFW News , ERCOT , power grid , Public . Final recommendations will be presented in the full report, which FERC and NERC expect to issue this winter. From February 8–20, 2021, Winter Storm Uri brought unusually cold weather and freezing precipitation throughout Texas and the Midwest. "During the winter storm, too many Texans were left without heat or power for days on end…These laws will improve the reliability of the electric grid and help ensure these problems never happen again." . Another important provision of the bill strengthens oversight of ERCOT by requiring that any rules adopted by or enforcement actions taken by ERCOT be approved by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC). ERCOT to argue it is immune from winter storm lawsuits . Weather updates continue. April 12, 2021 - Abbott nominates Peter Lake as the new chair of the PUC Commission. In the Texas electricity market, ERCOT, retail energy suppliers and end-use customers alike are just now understanding the profound financial impact the unprecedented storm has had on Texas. April 9, 2021 - As of today, the death toll from the winter storms totals 133. Natural gas production, gathering, and processing facilities should implement measures by winter 2022/23 to protect against freezing and cold-related limitations, such as enclosing sensitive facilities, adding heating equipment, or installing emergency generators. The affected Balancing Authorities—Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), Southwest Power Pool (SPP), and Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO)—each issued cold-weather preparation . Congress, state legislatures, or public utility commissions as applicable should consider requiring weather preparedness plans for natural gas production, processing, gathering, and transportation facilities by winter 2023/24. The nine preliminary key recommendations are: The five areas preliminarily recommended for further study consist of black start unit reliability, the need for addition transmission connections to ERCOT, measures to address natural gas supply shortages, the effect of low-frequency events on generators, and guidelines for identifying critical natural gas infrastructure loads. One suggested topic is whether Congress should close a purported jurisdictional gap over natural gas pipeline reliability. . ERCOT, Texas' primary energy grid operator, revealed Wednesday that the state's power grid came dangerously close to catastrophic failure during the severe winter storm that left millions without . Jun 15, 2021. But even with a lower benchmark than what Texans saw just nine months ago, ERCOT . Before each legislative session, TERC will submit a report to the Legislature about the status of Texas’ electricity supply chain. ERCOT, operator of the Texas electric grid, fighting in court over a $2 billion bill it sent to Brazos Electric Power Cooperative for power purchased during the winter storm. 15 June 2021 By: Deanna R. Reitman . The report . The bill requires TERC “to (1) ensure that the energy and electric industries in [Texas] meet high priority human needs and address critical infrastructure concerns and (2) enhance coordination and communication in the energy and electric industries in this state.”. Moreover, electric utilities and natural gas producers and pipelines making expensive capital improvements could face an uncertain path to recovery of such compliance costs. Law360 (November 16, 2021, 8:10 PM EST) -- A San Antonio appellate panel on Tuesday became the latest Texas state court to tackle the . Likewise, SB 2154 makes changes to the governance structure of the PUC. Winter Storm Updates, February 2021  . If you are stumbling upon this due to some crazy search, this was written prompted by the Texas winter storm the week of February 14, lasting for the next several days. "During the winter storm, too many Texans were left without heat or power for days on end, and I immediately made reforming ERCOT and weatherizing the power system emergency items," said Governor Abbott. The bill requires ERCOT to inspect those facilities for compliance and report continuing violations to the PUC. On Friday, March 12, 2021, CPS Energy, a gas and electric utility owned by the city of San Antonio, Texas, filed a lawsuit against the Electric Reliability Council of Texas ("ERCOT") (which acts as the payment clearinghouse for electricity buyers and sellers in Texas) and its officers and directors, alleging that EROT improperly allowed for . Accountability 03/08/2021 Commissioner Botkin Resigns Dan Skees Winter Storm 2021 The Hobby School online survey was distributed across 213 Texas counties (91.5% of the state population) served by the Texas Electrical Grid, which is managed by the Electrical Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). This page is provided as a one-stop destination for information related to the grid event and efforts to preclude its recurrence. The plaintiffs are . Exhibit 3 shows legislation related to storm costs that was passed by the 87th Legislature. information regarding ERCOT's response to the winter storm and its preparedness for future storms. The storm moved into Texas on Feb. 14, blanketing the Lone Star State in snow and ice. ERCOT Overcharged Texas Power Companies $16 Billion During Winter Storms. 7 • Stakeholder Communications . Another significant cause was icing on wind turbines. 03/12/2021 PUC Details Efforts Related To Winter Storm Grid Event 03/11/2021 PUC Names Director of ERCOT, Inc. but not as severe as the outages and price spikes seen in the Texas ERCOT grid. March 29, 2021. The report noted the February 2021 event was the fourth in the last 10 years that jeopardized the bulk power system due to unplanned generation outages resulting from extreme cold weather. March 8, 2021 - PUC Commissioner Shelly Botkin resigns following the power crisis. Temperatures plummeted down to 0 degrees and wind chill to -13. ERCOT forced dozens of natural gas facilities offline during winter storm Paul Takahashi , James Osborne , Staff writers May 7, 2021 Updated: May 8, 2021 7:17 a.m. This after the . - 0 - ERCOT Winter Storm Uri . ERCOT panel advances market changes driven by mid-February winter storm. Updated: 7:12 PM CDT June 10, 2021. The recommendations focus on enhanced protection against cold weather for critical generation as well as the natural gas assets supplying gas-fired generation so that this infrastructure remains operational even in extreme cold weather. Details for connecting to the webinar will be sent after you register. March 1, 2021. While the 2021 storm did not set records for the lowest recorded temperatures in many parts of the state, it caused generation outages and a loss of electricity service to Texas customers several times more severe than winter events leading to electric service disruptions in Duration: 1 hour. It created an unexpected . Electricity pricing under those plans is directly tied to the wholesale electricity spot price on the power grid, which can fluctuate wildly during extreme weather events and leave customers subject to sudden price spikes. A polar vortex that swept deep into the Lower 48 brought frigid air and snow as far south as Houston - a rarity. Whether these recommendations become binding will depend on legislative and regulatory action at the federal and state levels and, if adopted, could impose significant compliance costs on the electric and natural gas sectors. 42 slides . Many generating facilities in the southern US lack enclosed building structures to avoid heat buildup in the summer, but this solution places facilities at increased risk for freezing in the winter. For example, due to the severity of the emergency in ERCOT, both MISO and SPP tolerated emergency conditions for a longer period to allow additional power flow into ERCOT over the limited direct-current connections between the interconnections. A report by ERCOT late last week indicated that about 43 GW of capacity was forced off the Texas grid by the winter storm. The storm affected much of the central and southern US, but the extent and duration of electricity blackouts were much more severe in Texas, specifically within the territory served by ERCOT. Two other lawsuits claim that ERCOT was negligent in its failure to prepare for the state's power needs in the event of such a storm. The PUC, for example, must develop new rules that specify weatherization requirements for energy facilities, as well as rules that establish a classification system for violations. Among the bills, SB 1580 enables the state’s electric cooperatives (not-for-profit organizations owned by their customers) to use a financing tool called securitization to recoup “extraordinary costs and expenses” resulting from the winter storm. Half of the generation in ERCOT was forced offline during the storm. It is unclear, however, whether the recommendation on a cost recovery would go forward, particularly given the lack of FERC jurisdiction over wholesale electricity in ERCOT. Reforming Texas’ electric power sector was not on the agenda when the 87th Legislature convened in January 2021. Icicles hang off the State Highway 195 sign on February 18, 2021 in Killeen, Texas. Aditya Choukulkar Plaintiffs Mauricio and Daysi Marin are demanding $10 million in damages from the operator and utility company. That changed in late February after Winter Storm Uri exposed critical weaknesses in the state's power grid and its regulatory framework. October 2021 2021.10.26 Oct MUC Meeting Winter Preparedness Progress Report V1a Author: Source: ERCOT. Additionally, most natural gas production and processing facilities in ERCOT were not identified as critical load, and thus the controlled load shedding took fuel sources offline, forcing further load shedding. Following harsh criticism for mishandling the massive power outage that affected more than 4.5 million Texans during last week's winter storm, five of the 15 . Electric power generators, such as utility providers, comprise only one sector of critical infrastructure in the U.S. ERCOT's seasonal assessment for this winter estimates that the state, in the worst case scenario, could have only about 10,000 to 19,000 megawatts of total outages at any one time, assuming . Mechanical and electrical issues due to the extreme cold, other than frozen equipment, caused another 21% of unplanned outages, derates, and start-up failures. Presumably, cost-of-service generators will be able to receive rate recovery for prudently incurred costs to meet such mandates, but for the vast number of merchant generators and upstream gas producers, processors, and gatherers likely to be subject to winterization requirements, the path to recovering those costs is clouded. February Winter Storm 2021 . The report identified three primary causes of the outages, derates, or failures to start: freezing of generator components, fuel availability, and mechanical/electrical issues. HOLLAND, TX — ERCOT and the Texas Public Utility Commission recently unveiled their plan to fix the issues which caused so . At the time of the winter storm, TERC was a small, informal group. Applicable independent system operators, regional transmission organizations, or state commissions should allow generator owners to be compensated for building new or retrofitting new resources to operate to a specified ambient temperature and weather conditions through markets or cost recovery surcharges by winter 2023/24. Generator operators should specify times for inspecting and maintaining freeze protection measures by winter 2022/23. SAN ANTONIO, Texas — ERCOT said in this 21 page report it is taking a new, aggressive approach to managing the electric grid for winter. All documents relating to the winter 1989 disruption in electric reliability, Regulators in October finalized a rule that requires power plants to use "best efforts" to ensure plants can operate this winter and requires them to fix "acute" issues from the February 2021 winter storm. Related to utility management, did you know the Comptroller’s State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) reports the electricity, natural gas, water and transportation fuel consumption of state agencies and state universities? resulting from the severe winter storm that swept through the state in mid-February 2021. Commenting on the report, jointly authored by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC), FERC Chairman Richard Glick stated FERC “must take these recommendations seriously, and act decisively, to ensure the bulk power system doesn’t fail the next time extreme weather hits.”. . Winter Storm Uri 2021 The 87th Legislature Takes on Electricity Reform. At about 1:25 AM on Monday morning, February 15, 2021, ERCOT initiated rolling outages across much of the state of Texas. Extreme winter weather events in Texas have occurred repeatedly over decades and ERCOT has been unprepared for them. According to the National Weather Service, freezing rain and drizzle coated North and Central Texas as the storm began rolling in on Feb. 11, 2021, causing up to one-half inch of ice accumulation in some locations. HOUSTON — A preliminary report from ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texa s, lists seven main causes of power generator outages during the winter storm that crippled Texas. o Involvement in ERCOT protocol development & revision o Tracking 36 topics in 28 meetings (to date) . Securitization is the practice of issuing low-interest bonds funded by small fees charged to customers over an extended period and is employed as an alternative to passing on the costs to customers all at once. Texans Left To Foot The Bill From Winter Storm Uri. ERCOT Winter Storm Generator Outages By Cause Updated Report April 28, 2021 ERCOT Responses to Preliminary Outage Report Questions April 28, 2021 Preliminary Report on Causes of Generator Outages and Derates for Operating Days February 14 - 19, 2021 April 6, 2021 ERCOT to argue it is immune from winter storm lawsuits 7 months 4 days 23 hours ago Friday, April 09 2021 Apr 9, 2021 April 09, 2021 1:35 PM April 09, 2021 in News - Local Source: https://www . There are 15 other sectors: Source: Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency. CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE is any physical or cyber asset, system or network unequivocally necessary for society and the economy to function and whose major disruption could have disastrous effects on national security, public health and economic growth. Fortunately, ample time remained for Texas lawmakers to switch gears and pass bills in response to the storm’s devastating impact on the state. ERCOT also estimated that Texans would demand, at most, about 73,000 megawatts of electricity at any given time, based on weather . Texas Winter Storm Uri 2021. ERCOT based t he worst - case extreme-winter analysis for 2021 on the 2011 storm. More than half of ERCOT's winter generating capacity, largely powered by natural gas, was offline due to the storm, an estimated 45 gigawatts, according to Dan . How ERCOT prepared for the 2021 Texas winter storm ERCOT, the agency that oversees the state's electric grid, declared the state of Texas at the highest energy emergency on Sunday night. FERC, NERC, and the Regional Entities should host a joint technical conference to discuss how to improve the winter-readiness of generating units by winter 2022/23 to cover the period before new reliability standards can be developed, approved, and become effective. (TEXAS TRIBUNE) - The board overseeing the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the independent nonprofit entity that operates and . ERCOT Briefs: Week of Nov. 1, 2021 . At the time of the storm, ERCOT rules and enforcement actions were subject only to oversight and review by the PUC. The affected Balancing Authorities—Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), Southwest Power Pool (SPP), and Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO)—each issued cold-weather preparation notices on February 8 and 9 to generation and transmission operators in anticipation of the event. The report made 28 preliminary recommendations, including nine “key recommendations” and five recommendations for further study. From February 15 to February 18, 2021, Texas . Note: This does not represent an exhaustive list. But, after the 2021 storm, the Texas Legislature passed a series of bills that directed the PUC and other state agencies to implement enforceable rules designed to prevent a future disaster. The report concluded preliminarily that load shedding did not materially affect gas pipelines in part because of backup power and also because the need for gas transmission declined as production facilities shut-in and natural gas generators went offline. Past Event. ERCOT's fixer-upper plan aims to prevent more winter storm outages. That scenario occurred and was reported widely during Winter Storm Uri when the wholesale electricity price maxed out at $9,000 per megawatt hour and saddled some customers with thousands of dollars in electricity bills.

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