Texas power grid operator ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) is bracing for extreme temperatures forecasted for the upcoming days.
ERCOT manages electric power to more than 26 million Texas customers and represents 90% of the state’s electric load, according to the company.
A Southwest heat wave is on the way and places like Texas, California and Arizona are bracing for temps to soar into the triple digits.
Temperatures in Texas are forecast to reach 110+ degrees with the heat index.
ERCOT said while it can handle the record demand for the latest heat wave, Texans will pay DOUBLE the rates to stay cool.
According to so-called experts, the rare cold snap that hit Texas in February 2021 caused the storage levels of natural gas to drop to ‘mid-level’ – this drop in storage levels is now causing the energy rates to double.
KTRK reported:
With extreme temperatures forecasted this week, ERCOT, the organization that operates the state’s electrical grid, is expecting record demand for power in the upcoming days. But staff claim they will be able to handle the need.
Meanwhile, if you feel like your electricity bill is higher now than it was this time last year, you’re not wrong. Experts say rates have doubled.
David Kinchen, the chief operating officer of Energy Ogre, says Texans are feeling the pinch, not just at the gas pump or the grocery store, but now on their electric bill. Of course, prices will go up with more energy consumption during the summer, but we wanted to know what’s causing this surge.
“The direct correlation is natural gas setting that marginal price unit and causing prices to double,” Kinchen said.
He explains that the cold winter from two years ago brought storage levels of natural gas from a five-year high to mid-level. Then, the freeze in February 2021 caused the storage to go from the mid-level to a five-year low. When we asked whether the surge in prices is related to last year’s winter freeze, Kinchen says there is an impact.
