2018 data
Posted on 07/18/2022 9:07:28 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
As searing Texas heat drives power demand to record highs, the state’s grid operator is ordering plants to run at a historic pace, often forcing them to put off maintenance to keep cranking out electricity. That’s helped keep the lights on, for now, but the short-term focus is putting even more stress on a system that’s already stretched near the limit.
Twice in the past week, officials have called on Texans to limit electricity use during scorching afternoons as demand inched perilously close to overwhelming supply. Now, there are growing concerns over how long power plants can maintain the grueling pace as they run nonstop, according to Michele Richmond, executive director of Texas Competitive Power Advocates, a generator industry group.
“Things are going to break,” she said. “We have an aging fleet that’s being run harder than it’s ever been run.”
The situation underscores that the Texas grid is relying on short-term solutions for what’s poised to be a long-term problem. The state is contending with a population boom that’s driven demand higher. Crypto mining has also taken off in the past year, bringing with it the industry’s power-intensive operations. Meanwhile climate change has made extreme weather events that drive up electricity use more likely to occur and more severe - creating situations like a deadly February 2021 freeze that caused blackouts across the state.
(Excerpt) Read more at expressnews.com ...
Do you sell those, too???
(I happen to agree w/you on THIS ^.)
I thought the millions of windmills and solar panels in Texas were going to save us.
Ping!
Was it called “climate change” in 1980 when a similar heat wave hit this area?
Same power plants will be running 10 times capacity during next ice age to keep people from freezing to death.
Un-possible. # years ago they were paying people to take the power because of too much alternative energy.
Meanwhile in Canada, common sense is happening in spite of Mr. Tudeau:
https://www.nbpower.com/en/about-us/projects/advanced-small-modular-reactors/
Just like the old days, 1800 or so.
Until they outlaw LP and NG. And yes I have a whole house standby generator as well.
I grew up in Western India. Summer temps routinely exceeded 115 F and there was no A/C in any homes. India population has more than doubled since I left in 1960.
Any power left to charge cars?
2018 data
No worries. When original battery died, the EV will be phased out. No many can afford $14,500 replacement battery.
The wind around here is either dead calm or searing like a blow torch. I wonder how the windmills are doing for their part of the effort?
The system is screwed up. It needs an overhaul. To do that people need to be taken out and replaced.
For those that think this has happened before... it HAS NOT. Demand has increased, no plants have been added, wind and solar are not material contributors and the production margin has been harvested... there is little or nothing to spare in the way of capacity. No reliable system can be structured this way and no system can be reliable this way.
Basically they just don’t want to pay to fix the problem, didn’t want to weatherize the natural gas plants for cold weather because it’s “rare” here and don’t want to pay to update the infrastructure for summer
Then they blame windmills or environmentalists, and it somehow works here because of the politics, and are allowed to continue making bad decisions
LOL
“...the libs who have flocked in can flock out...”
Well phrased.
Atually, Etherium “mining” are going to a different model to find each “coin.” That change eliminates the need for a lot of computing power, and could result in a huge amount of power savings.
What does this have to do with secession?
Who can afford the fuel for that?
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