FEMA Sends Only 60 Generators to Texas During Power Crisis
Posted on 02/19/2021 5:45:32 AM PST by Hojczyk
The plunge in temperatures led to both a surge in heating demand and the concomitant power outages. Data from the EIA show that at nearly the exact same time demand was surging and energy grids were buckling, wind energy experienced a catastrophic drop-off: In the evening of Feb. 14, wind in the state was producing just over 9,000 MWh of energy, while 24 hours later it was putting out less than 800 MWh, a roughly 91% decrease in output.
Virtually every other energy industry in the state also saw decreased output over the same time period amid record demand, yet none saw as steep a decrease as did wind power. Natural gas, the state's largest source of energy, saw a 23% decline in output, as did coal, the second-largest source. Nuclear, which competes with wind for third place, dropped 26%.
Texas has come to rely increasingly on wind power in recent years. The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts said last August that the state's usage of wind power has "more than quadrupled" since 2009, with wind rising to supply 20% of the state's total energy needs in 2019. Coal power, meanwhile, declined from 37% of the state's electricity generation in 2009 to 20% in 2019.
A 30-day review of energy production in Texas shows that, while natural gas and wind energy were at times neck-and-neck in production rates throughout January and into mid-February, natural gas production skyrocketed following the cold snap while wind plummeted.
Natural gas energy output in Texas hit a high on Feb. 15 before declining sharply in the following days, yet it still remained over 400% higher than it was on Feb. 7, compared to an overall 83% decrease in wind output.
(Excerpt) Read more at justthenews.com ...
Data doesn’t “suggest” anything.
The wind generation played a small part, but the real problem was that too much money was spent on windmills instead of keeping up the existing coal and NG power plants.
Data doesn’t mean a damn thing. A 5 year old child knows that he can’t depend on the WIND to fly his kite!
Gas, oil, nuclear. Damn you Obama, Biden and Jane Fonda.
Natural gas prices have been below $3 MMCF for several years.
If wind turbines and solar panels were not subsidized, how high would the price of natural gas have to be in order to make wind turbines and solar panels economic?
Would natural gas have to be $10 MMCF or more for that to happen?
Texas did not spend the extra money for winterized windmills. I just drove through the mountains of W.Va. and the windmills was operating fine.
The problem in TX is what economists call the Peak Load problem. Many utilities like electric power, gas, and water are regulated monopolies. The problem is that often the regulations and the resultant pricing is based on production rather than capacity. As a result, there is no incentive to build production facilities with idle capacity. In CA a few years ago, they had the same power problems that resulted in “rolling brownouts” throughout the state.
Some measure of the problems TX, CA, and some other states see today are because of the short-sightedness of regulators in the past. Those regulators denied building permits because they caved in to the demands by environmentalists. I think it’s time for those environmentalist who protested the construction of power production and distribution to be registered with the state. Then, when power demand exceeds supply, the power companies shut off those homes first. Tying the burden of such environmental activity to the people who caused it only seems fair to me.
Climate Same
Texans were told in 2012 to winterize their energy structure but never did deeming the cost too high versus sub zero temps happening again.
Bookmark
Wow!
Welcome to Biden’s Banana Republic! (Formerly known as Obama’s Banana Republic)
Ultimately the power issue in Texas or anywhere else for that matter is like healthcare. Whenever the federal government gets involved in picking winners and losers, the losers are us......
Oh no, AOC has already declared the opposite and the MSM will back her up.
Maybe we could mandate all new homes in Texas have natural gas heating, or at least dual electric/gas. Electric heat requires generation from a gas or other fuel. Gas heating only requires low power electric starting and management software.
Texas needs to cut wind/solar down to less than 15% of the energy production. We are swimming in natural gas so why is so hard to get NG plants built? And why not ramp up a few more nukes?
A little critical path planning is needed here ...
2. The drop in wind output was almost complete.
3. Yes the other sources also had output decreases, but not to the extent of wind.
4. The demand doubled for this time of year.
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