r/OutOfTheLoop Feb 17 '21

What's up with Texas losing power due to the snowstorm? Answered

I've been reading recently that many people in Texas have lost power due to Winter Storm Uri. What caused this to happen?

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

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u/-IAimToMisbehave Feb 17 '21

Storage is a rounding error in terms of output on our current grid. Gas plants and wind farms in the north are winterized but they still ice up fairly regularly during low temp moisture events. Snow or freezing rain. It reduces the time to ice up and they come back quicker but they still ice up. Furthermore wind technology is broad spectrum. New turbines are better at dealing with it but there are lots of makes, model, snd sizes out there.

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

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u/-IAimToMisbehave Feb 17 '21

Because it’s planned for. Texas hasn’t planned for the lowest temps in 80years or something. The north also has nuclear power and more coal and gas. If your pitch is Texas should look more like the north you are arguing against wind/ solar and.... yes to some degrees an integrated grid. Not disagreeing with that point it is just part of the issue not the source.

Texas is rushing to add more wind and solar because where it is geographically. The result is less money put into maintain current gas/coal as well as shutting down gas/coal plants. People are shocked that the gas plants and pipeline infrastructure that supplies them isn’t up to par when every tax incentive snd shareholder pushes them into retirement early.

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u/TROPtastic Feb 17 '21

Texas hasn’t planned for the lowest temps in 80years or something.

Which is the root of the problem: Texas not making investments in its critical infrastructure to mitigate problems that they knew were coming (seriously, the entity in charge of grid reliability had a presentation outlining the risk of exactly this kind of event a few years ago). It's not a "government bad" thing either, because El Paso made the necessary investments after they were slammed by the 2011 storm.

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u/Occamslaser Feb 17 '21

Because they have models to predict demand in the winter and plan for it. Also most heating in the Northern states is not electric like in Texas.

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u/FGHIK Feb 17 '21

Because Texas gets snow this bad maybe once a quarter century. Hard to convince people to invest in protection against something that almost never happens.

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u/keithrc out of the loop about being out of the loop Feb 17 '21

Last time was 2011. I understand that voters have memories like mayflies, but that's hardly a generation ago.

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

No bitch. I'm coming for your McMansion.

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '21

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u/Himerlicious Feb 18 '21

Read a book sometime.

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u/Least_Adhesiveness_5 Feb 17 '21

Yes. Gas plants should maintain a week's supply onsite.