Texas regulator proposes power market overhaul after 2021 freeze

Jan 19 (Reuters) – The Public Utility Fee of Texas (PUCT) on Thursday adopted a brand new market design for the state’s electrical grid that can see energy vegetation getting paid to be on standby, aimed toward securing new technology capability and rising grid reliability.

The market redesign is the newest of a number of efforts by Texas regulators to make sure reliability of electrical energy provide after a February 2021 deep freeze that killed greater than 200 folks and left round 4.5 million Texas houses and companies with out energy and warmth.

The unanimous vote by the five-member fee proposed requiring electrical energy retailers to pay energy vegetation to be prepared to return on-line throughout grid emergencies, encouraging the development of recent technology assets.

The fee additionally directed the grid operator, Electrical Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), to “develop bridging choices to retain current energy vegetation and construct new technology assets till the PCM could be absolutely carried out.”

The reform, referred to as the Efficiency Credit score Mechanism (PCM), fulfils the necessities of a 2021 grid weatherization regulation for on-demand technology to be accessible in periods of excessive demand, but it surely is not going to be carried out earlier than a overview by the state legislature, the fee mentioned.

Nonetheless, one of many sponsors of that regulation, Senator Charles Schwertner, in a press release referred to as the PCM “an unnecessarily advanced, capacity-style design that places the aggressive market in danger with out guaranteeing the supply of recent dispatchable technology.”

“Issues stay concerning shifting threat away from turbines and towards shoppers,” mentioned Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil and Fuel Affiliation, calling for turbines to be “paid for actual time efficiency.”

Earlier this week, the Dallas Federal Reserve mentioned that the Texas electrical grid, which averted rolling blackouts throughout extreme chilly climate final month, remains to be weak to extreme climate regardless of safeguards following the February 2021 freeze.

Reporting by Deep Vakil in Bengaluru; Enhancing by Bradley Perrett

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