Electricity Price Cap in Question After Texas Blackouts

[sonias]

http://www.texastribune.org/texas-energy/energy/price-cap-in-question-after-texas-blackouts/">Texas Tribune 2/8/11
Electricity Price Cap in Question After Texas Blackouts
When blackouts rolled through the state last week, wholesale electricity rates skyrocketed to more than 50 times their normal price, finally hitting a set limit. But as Matt Largey of KUT News reports, the timing of changes to that limit is raising questions.

Very good article (audio story) about how the cap on the amount of electric sale went up just one day before the power outages. That cap was raised a whopping $3,000 a MWH just in time to reap in huge profits for someone.

:mad:

[northoftheborder]

1. Time to turn over some rocks.

[sonias]

2. I'm sure we'll see the ugly truth

The problem is what will happen to the greedy bastards? If it is up to the Texas Lege - the answer is nothing. Because this industry owns the majority of the players.
:shrug:

[plumbob]

4. And once they're turned over, throw them!

Really hard!

[sonias]

3. Texplainer: Why Does Texas Have Its Own Power Grid?

Texas Tribune 2/8/11
Texplainer: Why Does Texas Have Its Own Power Grid?

Texas' secessionist inclinations do have one modern outlet: the electric grid. There are three grids in the Lower 48 states: the Eastern Interconnection, the Western Interconnection — and Texas.

(snip)
ERCOT was formed in 1970, in the wake of a major blackout in the Northeast in November 1965, and it was tasked with managing grid reliability in accordance with national standards. The agency assumed additional responsibilities following electric deregulation in Texas a decade ago. The ERCOT grid remains beyond the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which succeeded the Federal Power Commission and regulates interstate electric transmission.

(snip)
Historically, the Texas grid's independence has been violated a few times. Once was during World War II, when special provisions were made to link Texas to other grids, according to Cudahy. Another episode occurred in 1976 after a Texas utility, for reasons relating to its own regulatory needs, deliberately flipped a switch and sent power to Oklahoma for a few hours. This event, known as the "Midnight Connection," set off a major legal battle that could have brought Texas under the jurisdiction of federal regulators, but it was ultimately resolved in favor of continued Texan independence.

Even today, ERCOT is also not completely isolated from other grids — as was evident last week when the state imported some power from Mexico during the rolling blackouts. ERCOT has three ties to Mexico and — as an outcome of the "Midnight Connection" battle — it also has two ties to the eastern U.S. grid, though they do not trigger federal regulation for ERCOT. All can move power commercially as well as be used in emergencies, according to ERCOT spokeswoman Dottie Roark. A possible sixth interconnection project, in Rusk County, is being studied, and another ambitious proposal, called Tres Amigas, would link the three big U.S. grids together in New Mexico, though Texas' top utility regulator has shown little enthusiasm for participating.

Bottom line: Texas has its own grid to avoid dealing with the feds.

:kick:

[kentauros]

6. Wow, I didn't know that about no FERC for our grid!

I work for companies that design and build pipelines, so FERC compliance is standard operating procedure. I never would have imagined that our grid wouldn't be regulated by FERC, too.

I hope that when the pendulum swings the other way in our politics, that we can get down to sunsetting these unnecessary agencies, like TCEQ and now, ERCOT.

[sonias]

7. Wild, wild Texas

Has to reinvent the wheel and sometimes makes stupid mistakes like making a square one first.

:(

[Melissa G]

5. #5

The Texas Lege loves electric deregulation!

Whatcha mean we shouldn't raise the cap right before a freeze is obviously headed our way? Are you an un-American anti-capitalist? :sarcasm:

If we didn't raise that cap, it would deprive our constituents of some outrageous profits! (the real important constituents, AKA electric industry lobbyists and their corporate bosses.):sarcasm:

edit to say BTW.. the attention this all brings gives us a chance to blame this all on Obama and the regulation of utilities making things more expensive. The fact that there is no factual justification for this assertion is totally irrelevant. Thank you, State Senator Troy Frasier!
http://www.texastribune.org/texas-energy/electric-reliability-council-texas/the-rolling-chain-of-events-behind-texas-blackouts/

Related previous DU thread
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=180x67668

[sonias]

8. Outages put focus on grid operator

AAS 2/9/11
Outages put focus on grid operator

Until last week, most Texans had never heard of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the little-known entity that helps keep their houses warm, lights on and computers running.

Now ERCOT — which acts as a sort of air traffic controller for the state energy industry — is facing media and political scrutiny over its handling of power outages that prompted rolling blackouts across Texas.

(snip)
One thing that's easy to grasp is that most Texans who pay an electric bill are, in essence, paying ERCOT, and those charges are going up. A nonprofit entity created in its current form by the Texas Legislature, the organization receives no state funding but is paid through fees charged to power companies, who pass on the costs to their customers.

Since 2008, ERCOT's fees have increased nearly 50 percent, costing a typical residential consumer $9.57 a year. It anticipates raising fees an additional 33 percent in coming years, according to the Sunset Advisory Commission, which reviewed ERCOT's operations last year.

Scrutiny is always good. ERCOT may be a failure but it is still just the front for the greedy electric power industry. They are the real criminals who are hiding behind ERCOT. :grr:

[sonias]

9. At Blackout Hearing, Big Political Donors Questioned

Texas Tribune 2/16/11
At Blackout Hearing, Big Political Donors Questioned

Te power companies and execs at today's hearing on the rolling blackouts this month were familiar faces to the senators asking the tough questions. Over the years, they've helped bankroll the lawmakers' political campaigns.

Since 2000, in fact, power companies have donated at least $430,000 to members of the two Senate committees represented at today's hearing: Business & Commerce and Natural Resources, according to a quick analysis of campaign data made public by the Texas Ethics Commission.

Troy Fraser is the guy who has been paid off the most with Christ Harris coming in 2nd. They are the Chairmen of the two committees overseeing the industry.


Fraser, Troy * $105,468
Harris, Chris $46,018

"Overseeing" might be too strong a word for what they do however.

:shrug:

[efhmc]

10. There never has been any doubt in my mind that the

"lack" of electricity was manipulated. We go weeks in the summer with100+ days with no rolling blackouts and most people have electric ac, whereas a large percentage of Texans use natural gas for heating.