Snowpocolypse: rolling blackouts instituted

[Thread]

Why is a dude safely on the better grid trying to comment on the Texas grid?

Only an idiot would be trying that.

Mornin', fart-face.

[ChumpDumper]

:lol there he goes again. Probably just squawking one of his boring repeats.

Dude hasn't said anything new in ten years.

[Thread]

:lol there he goes again. Probably just squawking one of his boring repeats.

Dude hasn't said anything new in ten years.

...here's new...They shot President Trump, but he's okay...in fact he's better off than before they shot him.

tee, hee.

[ChumpDumper]

Let me guess -- another "catchphrase"?

Dude got boring and irrelevant. Bots aren't worth anyone's attention.:tu

[Thread]

Let me guess -- another "catchphrase"?

Dude got boring and irrelevant. Bots aren't worth anyone's attention.:tu

...tell that to Miniclip's 8 Ball Pool. Please!!!

[Winehole23]

Lol CC dropping in to neg Biden and boost gas industry PR, while a million Houstonians are still waiting for power to he restored.

[Winehole23]

OK, to be technical, no new primary load power plants.It's understandable that you don't assimilate your right wing propaganda perfectly, that it sometimes comes out garbled.

[Thread]

It's understandable that you don't assimilate your right wing propaganda perfectly, that it sometimes comes out garbled.

I'll straighten it out...You ain't turnin' Texas.

[Winehole23]

If the future of Texas power depends on Biden's new rules, 30 years of Republicans running Texas didn't plan for it before that.

[Thread]

If the future of Texas power depends on Biden's new rules, 30 years of Republicans running Texas didn't plan for it before that.

Old Bullseye Joe.

tee, hee.

[CosmicCowboy]

Lol CC dropping in to neg Biden and boost gas industry PR, while a million Houstonians are still waiting for power to he restored.

Hurricanes knock down powerlines, whinehole. Has nothing to do with power generation. Nice try at being snarky, though.

[Ef-man]

All about the $$$$$$

During a news conference Thursday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was asked by a reporter if the state is considering modifying the power grid, which has encountered several issues over the years due to severe weather.

“The grid is a whole different issue which we’re addressing, have been addressing, and will continue to address,” Patrick said. “The power is down because the lines are down, and the transmission lines are down primarily because trees fell on them.”

Patrick addressed a report by a local media which mentioned burying the lines, which he said would be “prohibitively expensive.”

[CosmicCowboy]

It's understandable that you don't assimilate your right wing propaganda perfectly, that it sometimes comes out garbled.

Wow whinehole, you really are on a snark roll today. Not really bothering me Tbh. Sitting on the back porch at the house in Colorado watching the trout stream flow by and enjoying my zen.

[Thread]

All about the $$$$$$

During a news conference Thursday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was asked by a reporter if the state is considering modifying the power grid, which has encountered several issues over the years due to severe weather.

“The grid is a whole different issue which we’re addressing, have been addressing, and will continue to address,” Patrick said. “The power is down because the lines are down, and the transmission lines are down primarily because trees fell on them.”

Patrick addressed a report by a local media which mentioned burying the lines, which he said would be “prohibitively expensive.”

You ain't turnin' Texas, squirt.

[CosmicCowboy]

All about the $$$$$$

During a news conference Thursday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was asked by a reporter if the state is considering modifying the power grid, which has encountered several issues over the years due to severe weather.

“The grid is a whole different issue which we’re addressing, have been addressing, and will continue to address,” Patrick said. “The power is down because the lines are down, and the transmission lines are down primarily because trees fell on them.”

Patrick addressed a report by a local media which mentioned burying the lines, which he said would be “prohibitively expensive.”

You realize, if the utilities raised their rates enough to bury all the lines you would be bitching about your ridiculously high utility bills?

[CosmicCowboy]

Wow whinehole, you really are on a snark roll today. Not really bothering me Tbh. Sitting on the back porch at the house in Colorado watching the trout stream flow by and enjoying my zen.

BTW a comfortable 71 degrees and 38% humidity @ 5:44 LOL

[ChumpDumper]

We're comfortable here because our electricity is on.

I guess lol on those people who don't have it?

[baseline bum]

BTW a comfortable 71 degrees and 38% humidity @ 5:44 LOL

Meh it's 87 here

[CosmicCowboy]

We're comfortable here because our electricity is on.

I guess lol on those people who don't have it?

Why don't you invite a bus load to your house? You are closer.

[ChumpDumper]

Why don't you invite a bus load to your house? You are closer.

Your house in Texas is vacant and closer yet, isn't it?

[CosmicCowboy]

Your house in Texas is vacant and closer yet, isn't it?

So your alleged sympathy for those without power was just a hypocritical act for an internet "win"? And yeah sorry those people got hit by a hurricane. Shit happens.

[ChumpDumper]

So your alleged sympathy for those without power was just a hypocritical act for an internet "win"?No. I was just throwing your bullshit deflection back at you. Take it as an L if that's the way you're playing.

And yeah sorry those people got hit by a hurricane. Shit happens.But LOL all the same, right?

I think hardening the ERCOT grid is a decent idea after connecting it to functional, adult-run grids.

[CosmicCowboy]

No. I was just throwing your bullshit deflection back at you. Take it as an L if that's the way you're playing.
But LOL all the same, right?

No lol here. Shit happens. If you are concerned quit being so sanctimonious on the internet and get off your ass and do something to help.

[ChumpDumper]

No lol here.
It was right here:

BTW a comfortable 71 degrees and 38% humidity @ 5:44 LOL

[CosmicCowboy]

We're comfortable here because our electricity is on.



Pot kettle black

[ChumpDumper]

Pot kettle black?

I was explaining that people with their electricity on are just as comfortable as you are.

And I didn't say LOL. That was you. This shit happens every time you take something personally tbh.

[Winehole23]

Wow whinehole, you really are on a snark roll today. Not really bothering me Tbh. Sitting on the back porch at the house in Colorado watching the trout stream flow by and enjoying my zen.yet somehow you found the time to snark back, what a world!

[Winehole23]

Hurricanes knock down powerlines, whinehole. Has nothing to do with power generation. Nice try at being snarky, though.it's capital intensive, but lines can be buried.

how do you think they keep the lights on up north?

[CosmicCowboy]

?

I was explaining that people with their electricity on are just as comfortable as you are.

And I didn't say LOL. That was you. This shit happens every time you take something personally tbh.

The LOL had nothing to do with hurricane victims. I have just been watching you guys whine about the heat. OK, I'm out. Yall have fun.

[Thread]

yet somehow you found the time to snark back, what a world!

You aint' no better, Winester.

[ChumpDumper]

The LOL had nothing to do with hurricane victims. I have just been watching you guys whine about the heat. OK, I'm out. Yall have fun.It's been pretty mild for days tbh.

You're too late with your attempt.

I guess you can try again in a couple days?

I'll still be comfortable because my electricity works.

[Winehole23]

Keep posting, CC you're doing great!

[Winehole23]

If the future of Texas power depends on Biden's new rules, 30 years of Republicans running Texas didn't plan for it before that.

[Thread]

[[[https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/images/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Winehole23 (https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?p=11100613#post11100613)If the future of Texas power depends on Biden's new rules, 30 years of Republicans running Texas didn't plan for it before that.]]]

You ain't turnin' Texas.

[Winehole23]

GOP maladministration and failure at basic governing sure does stand out -- Dems haven't been in charge in Texas since the mid 1990s.

[Thread]

https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/images/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Winehole23 (https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?p=11054666#post11054666)
GOP maladministration and failure at basic governing sure does stand out -- Dems haven't been in charge in Texas since the mid 1990s.]]]

And Ma Richards ain't walkin' thru that door. Ipso facto:::you ain't turnin' Texas.

[Winehole23]

Republicans run against "bad government" and prove their bona fides by governing badly.

[Thread]

[[[https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/images/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Winehole23 (https://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?p=10624293#post10624293)
Republicans run against "bad government" and prove their bona fides by governing badly.]]]

You're worse. Biden swore on the Good Book he'd shut COVID down. His tote? 3/4 of a million Americans dead in the ground and we're still counting.

Biden puts the cross hairs on President Trump and a registered Republican misses by less than a inch.

I'm paying $2 a gallon gas with Trump. I'm paying $4 a gallon gas with Biden.

Let us proceed...

[Winehole23]

Texas had 210 weather-related power outages — more than any other state — from 2000 to 2023, according to an analysis by the nonprofit Climate Central that used power outage data from the U.S. Department of Energy.https://www.texastribune.org/2024/07/18/texas-energy-grid-power-outages-climate-change-infrastructure/

[Winehole23]

1817186300769849364
https://x.com/davenewworld_2/status/1817186300769849364

[RandomGuy]

The LOL had nothing to do with hurricane victims. I have just been watching you guys whine about the heat. OK, I'm out. Yall have fun.

When are you guys going to make Governor Hotwheels fix the electrical grid?

[RandomGuy]

1817186300769849364
https://x.com/davenewworld_2/status/1817186300769849364

heh. The couch fucking thing is hilarious.

[Thread]

When are you guys going to make Governor Hotwheels fix the electrical grid?


heh. The couch fucking thing is hilarious.


Ma Richards ain't walkin' thru that door. Ipso facto:::you ain't turnin' Texas.

[RandomGuy]

GOP maladministration and failure at basic governing sure does stand out -- Dems haven't been in charge in Texas since the mid 1990s.

Republicans.
SUCK.
At government.

Brownback in Kansas, and the idiots here who fucking can't even get rid of an indicted attorney general or fix the fuckign power grid.

I keep saying the day they lose power creeps towards us slowly, and have been watching the margins shrink year by year. There is a reason they are working so hard at voter suppression.

When it finally happens and Democrats actually get the state government back and do things that actually work, it will be a tough case for the fascist fuckboys to make to convince people to give them the government to fuck up again.

[Thread]

Republicans.
SUCK.
At government.

Brownback in Kansas, and the idiots here who fucking can't even get rid of an indicted attorney general or fix the fuckign power grid.

I keep saying the day they lose power creeps towards us slowly, and have been watching the margins shrink year by year. There is a reason they are working so hard at voter suppression.

When it finally happens and Democrats actually get the state government back and do things that actually work, it will be a tough case for the fascist fuckboys to make to convince people to give them the government to fuck up again.

You ain't turnin' Texas, fart-face!!!

[Winehole23]

solar and battery power have increased dramatically in the last few years. the new emphasis new gas plants is fine, but the bottleneck is transmission at this point.

1832879863528595628

https://x.com/douglewinenergy/status/1832879863528595628

[baseline bum]

it's capital intensive, but lines can be buried.

how do you think they keep the lights on up north?

Lost my electricity for 6 hours night before last because of ooh 20 mph winds.

[Winehole23]

dang

[Winehole23]

Briscoe Cain's district, iirc, there have been other recent accidents there

1835817832140980614https://x.com/allynwest/status/1835817832140980614

[Winehole23]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GXnlWcNXsAAMIkv?format=jpg&name=900x900

[Winehole23]

Texas is a national leader in solar energy

1837145840294490571

https://x.com/EvilMopacATX/status/1837145840294490571

[Winehole23]

more Texans work in clean(er) energy than in oil and gas


According to a new report from the US Department of Energy (https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2024-09/USEER%202024%20States_0913.pdf), Texas added more renewable energy workers than any other state — and passed 50,000 total renewable energy workers — in 2023.

There’s more: Texas added over 8,000 new jobs in the energy efficiency sector last year, also more than any other state — we now have 170,000 energy efficiency workers. And tens of thousands more work on batteries, microgrids, electric vehicles, and other clean energy technologies.


https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1d9ea78 d-dfac-4689-a6f2-7071be4ae78d_1227x685.png


(https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1d9ea78 d-dfac-4689-a6f2-7071be4ae78d_1227x685.png)
From Rising Demand, Changing Supply (https://www.douglewin.com/p/watch-rising-demand-changing-supply) presentation for TEPN paid subscribers, Sept. 13, 2024


That means about a quarter-million Texans make their living in various clean energy sectors — more than in oil and gas.

https://www.douglewin.com/p/clean-energy-boom-is-already-great

[Winehole23]

spare capacity and new markets for Texas energy, along with batteries and renewable energy, add to reliability.

the main suspense is how hard Texas will suck off energy producers, while continuing to piss on the customer.



The US Department of Energy (DOE) announces $1.5B for four transmission projects – including connecting the Texas grid to the Southeast grids for the first time ever.
The projects, spanning multiple states, will add nearly 1,000 miles of new transmission lines and increase grid capacity by 7,100 megawatts (MW). They’ll boost grid reliability, lower energy costs, and support the clean energy transition.

The projects will improve transmission congestion and resilience, especially as the country faces more extreme weather events. By improving connections between regions and making it easier to access renewable energy sources like wind and solar, these projects will make energy more reliable and cost-effective. They’ll also generate nearly 9,000 jobs, supporting local economies in Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.



Hell froze over in Texas – the state will connect to the US grid for the first time via a fed grant | Electrek (https://electrek.co/2024/10/03/hell-froze-over-in-texas-us-grid-first-time/)

[Winehole23]

Southern Spirit (Texas to Mississippi): This is a REALLY. BIG. DEAL. Spanning 320 miles, this HVDC line will link Texas’ isolated ERCOT grid with the Southeast grids for the first time, adding 3,000 MW of bidirectional capacity across Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. It’s designed to prevent outages like the ones during Winter Storm Uri that hit Texas hard in 2021. It’s expected to create 850 construction jobs and 305 permanent jobs.

[Ef-man]

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/N94AAOSwrT5hKLSy/s-l500.jpg

[baseline bum]

Would 3000MW in Feb 2021 have saved our grid that's designed by Abbott and Perry to fail? I doubt it.

[Winehole23]

Would 3000MW in Feb 2021 have saved our grid that's designed by Abbott and Perry to fail? I doubt it.right, but it's a move in the right direction.

[baseline bum]

right, but it's a move in the right direction.

Yeah better than nothing, but still sucks to get excited for a minute at having a functional grid only to see we're only adding the potential for another 3.5% of peak demand.

[Winehole23]

Yeah better than nothing, but still sucks to get excited for a minute at having a functional grid only to see we're only adding the potential for another 3.5% of peak demand.headlines lie

[Winehole23]

"I disclosed it, nbd"

1851999785605124430

https://x.com/Sandi/status/1851999785605124430

[Winehole23]

The ethics code for public officials in Texas, regarded as among the most lax in the nation, makes it legal for lawmakers (https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/the-craddicks-profit-from-the-industry-they-oversee/) to make money from doing business with companies they regulate. Still, [State Sen. Phil] King’s financial entanglement raises questions about whether he was tending to his own business or the state’s when he authored SB 1015 and other legislation, as well as when he waded into Oncor’s PUC dispute with its customers.https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/state-senator-phil-king-oncor-select-mat/

[Winehole23]

stricter rules for everyday state employees than legislators


“It is unfortunate, but par for the course in Texas,” said Alison Silverstein, an energy consultant in Texas who previously served as senior adviser to a Republican-appointed chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. She pointed out that a state employee would be barred by conflict of interest requirements from being a part owner of a company that did business with another company the employee regulated. But state lawmakers aren’t bound by such ethics rules. “If we lived in a good-government state, it might be prohibited for any legislator to own a company that did business with the people he governs. But we don’t live in a good-government state.”

[Winehole23]

large-user demand could outpace transmission capacity

lawmakers have "signaled interest" in having large-users picking up some of the cost


In Texas, the U.S. Energy Information Administration predicted that demand (https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=63344) from large users — including but not limited to data centers — would grow by 60% this year, making up around 10% of the total forecast demand on the state’s main grid.

Large users requiring 5,496 MW of power have been approved by ERCOT (https://www.ercot.com/files/docs/2024/09/05/LLI%20Queue%20Status%20Update%20-%202024-9-6.pdf) to connect to the grid, according to a September report. The EIA expects that by the end of this year, ERCOT will have approved 9,500 MW in total large-user demand — a 73% increase.

That includes data centers and other large users like crypto mining facilities, which represent the biggest share of large users looking to connect to the grid, according to ERCOT.

...

Nationally, data centers are expected to consume between 11% and 12% of total U.S. power demand by 2030 — up from around 3% and 4% of demand today, according to an analysis by McKinsey (https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/private-capital/our-insights/how-data-centers-and-the-energy-sector-can-sate-ais-hunger-for-power).



The Public Utility Commission approved a rule (https://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/25/texas-cryptocurrency-mining-registration-public-utility-commission-er/) in November requiring crypto mining facilities connected to the ERCOT grid to register their power usage with regulators.

The projected growth in usage also means the grid will need more transmission lines (https://www.ercot.com/files/docs/2024/04/22/5%20CEO%20Update.pdf), ERCOT CEO Pablo Vegas said in April.

“The forecasted pace of load growth could exceed the pace at which transmission capacity can be built to support it,” Vegas’ presentation said (https://www.ercot.com/files/docs/2024/04/22/5%20CEO%20Update.pdf). “A new era of transmission system planning is necessary to manage the large amount of prospective load.”

Typically, the costs of building out transmission and distribution infrastructure are spread across a utility’s customers. But the major investments needed to support demand driven by large industrial users raised the question of who should foot the bill.

Lawmakers have signaled interest (https://senate.texas.gov/cmtes/88/c510/c510_InterimReport_2024.pdf)in limiting the costs passed onto small energy consumers “by ensuring that industries with significant electricity demands bear a fair portion of their actual costs.”
https://www.texastribune.org/2025/01/24/texas-data-center-boom-grid/

[Winehole23]

there's a Uri-related class action lawsuit still out there


On Wednesday, the Texas Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case in which 15,000 Texans and small business owners have sued the largest electric transmission and distribution utilities (https://www.dallasnews.com/business/2025/01/03/texas-supreme-court-will-review-winter-storm-uri-claims-against-utility-companies/) on allegations of wrongful death, personal injury and property damage. They are seeking billions of dollars in damages (https://www.dallasnews.com/business/energy/2022/01/07/the-texas-freeze-caused-over-500000-damage-claims-and-insurers-want-ercot-to-pay-them-back/). The lawyers for the plaintiffs have accused the energy companies of gross negligence and intentional nuisance, claiming that the utilities decided where to cut power, favored some neighborhoods over others, intentionally took steps that made the power shortage worse, ignored numerous warnings to better winterize their systems and lied to their customers about the seriousness of the storm as it approached.

Lawyers for the utilities are asking the justices to dismiss all these cases as frivolous, or at least issue a ruling that makes it considerably more difficult for the plaintiffs to win at trial.

Existing law, according to legal experts, seems to favor the plaintiffs winning their arguments at the state’s highest court. However, most appellate law observers believe a majority of the justices could be interested in writing new law that would allow the energy companies to avoid ever facing trial.

“Based on its previous decisions in Uri litigation, I suspect the Supreme Court’s ruling in this matter will once again be disappointing to the plaintiffs,” said Dallas appellate law expert Chad Ruback (https://appeal.pro/). “Thus far, the Supreme Court has held plaintiffs in Uri litigation to a very high burden, and I would be surprised if the court were to change course now.”

Lawyers for the victims say that even if the Texas Supreme Court does not dismiss their cases, it will be at least another year before the first case could go to trial because very little discovery has been done and no witnesses have been deposed.

“Our clients were devastated because of the decisions made by these companies, but they are starting to lose hope that they will ever get their day in court to examine and present the evidence,” said Houston trial attorney Derek Potts, who represents scores of individuals and small business owners in Winter Storm Uri litigation. “Texas law in these type of cases against energy utilities is unnecessarily complicated, and the Texas Supreme Court has not been a friend to people’s constitutional rights to trial by jury.”


“The conduct of these electric companies was so bad the insurance companies are actually on our side in this litigation,” Potts said.
https://www.dallasnews.com/business/2025/02/17/texas-courts-blocking-jury-trials-for-30000-victims-of-2021-winter-storm/

[Winehole23]

experts are helping screw ratepayers with bogus projections


What if I were to tell you about an obscure clique of consultants that concoct dubious economic analysis to convince regulators to side with corporations, enabling a massive rip-off of ordinary Americans? I think your curious, cautious response might be, “You’re going to have to be more specific.”


OK, so this obscure clique has a name. They’re called the Society of Utility and Regulatory Financial Analysts, or SURFA. And they are a large part of the reason why you’re paying way too much for electricity.



Ellis has an unusual profile for an anti-corporate crusader: He was the former chief economist at Sempra Energy, a consultant with McKinsey, an analyst for ExxonMobil, and an engineer for SoCal Edison. But in his current position as an independent expert witness who testifies before state public utility commissions, he has found an unusual set of circumstances where investor-owned utilities are applying their own bespoke economic logic to win themselves large electricity rate increases. According to Ellis’s estimates, this translates to $50 billion in excess costs for utility customers every year, or about $300 per household.
The problem specifically involves investor-owned utilities, which provide 70 percent of the electricity in the U.S. These private utilities have increased residential electricity rates over the past three years at a rate 49 percent higher than inflation. Over the same period, publicly owned utilities have increased their rates 44 percent less than inflation.

Such a discrepancy should not be possible, and indeed it hasn’t been over the prior 40 years. Utilities in the U.S. have by and large made a basic bargain: They get monopoly access to a coverage area to provide power, in exchange for a commitment to universal service and rate regulation by a state public utility commission. When utilities want a rate increase, they must face a hearing with a PUC, where the utility has to prove that the increase only affords them a “just and reasonable” profit, known as the rate of return.


A tiny group of experts give testimony to PUCs in these rate-setting proceedings, estimating among other things how much return on equity utilities should receive. Four consulting firms provided 90 percent of the testimony in the sample of 60 proceedings that Ellis reviewed; in more than half of those proceedings, just two people gave the testimony.


The experts use four different economic models to construct their estimates, Ellis explains in the paper. Two of them—the “risk premium” model and the “expected earnings” analysis—are used nowhere in any other area of finance. And the calculations are perfectly circular: The “just and reasonable” rates in the expected earnings analysis are based on future forecasts, in other words, on the future rates of return that the company expects to receive! The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission stated in 2022 that these two models “def[y] general financial logic,” and prohibited them from use in federal proceedings. But they are still used routinely at the state level.


The long-term return for the broader stock market is roughly 6 to 7 percent annually. Investor-owned utilities were bringing back 9.6 percent in the first half of 2023, a rate that’s 30 percent above the total market. If anything, they should be bringing in less than the market average. The only reason they aren’t is because public utility commissions are allowing this “financial alchemy,” as Ellis calls it, to rule the day.

https://prospect.org/environment/2025-02-21-secret-society-raising-your-electricity-bills/

[Winehole23]

Trump's new import taxes could put a kink in maintaining and building out the grid



Take transformers, which are used (http://spiff.rit.edu/classes/phys213/lectures/transform/transform.html) to step up generation voltage for long-distance transmission, or step down voltage for distribution. There is a nationwide—and global—shortage of transformers, as lead times have surged (https://www.woodmac.com/news/opinion/supply-shortages-and-an-inflexible-market-give-rise-to-high-power-transformer-lead-times/) from fifty weeks in 2021 to 120 weeks in early 2024. But US production of transformers meets only 20 percent (https://go.woodmac.com/l/131501/2024-05-09/3298sh/131501/1715251159s0zV3yY3/Wood_Mackenzie_Transformer_Insight_Update___April_ 24_Update.pdf) of domestic demand.


Before US President Donald Trump paused Mexico-related tariffs (https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/what-did-us-get-from-deals-to-pause-tariffs-on-20146753.php) on February 4, Mexican-produced transformers—and other electrical components—were on the list of imports that were going to be slammed by a 25 percent tariff, which would have significantly impacted new electricity generation and transmission.


Tariffs could theoretically push prices of finished goods above 25 percent due to “pancaking” taxes on cross-border shipments of intermediate goods, where each border crossing incurs a fee. Furthermore, across-the-board (https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/02/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-restores-section-232-tariffs/) 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum will raise prices of a specialized steel product called grain-oriented electrical steel, which is used in transformers, elevating the price of transformers made in the United States.


Higher prices for transformers, especially transformers imported from Mexico, because of tariffs will raise project-development costs and delay infrastructure upgrades (https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy24osti/87653.pdf), hitting Texas hardest. As the top US importer of transformer units, Texas relies heavily on Mexico, which supplies nearly half of all high-voltage transformer imports through the Laredo Census District.
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/tariffs-on-mexico-could-threaten-texass-electricity-reliability/

[Winehole23]

BBB guts solar, could lead to an energy crunch

another self-inflicted, civilizational wound

by an extreme, out of touch Republican Party

[Winehole23]

Republicans just raised your electric bill

[Winehole23]

taxing new solar and wind capacity is moronic

[Winehole23]

the excise taxes for new wind and solar capacity were removed from the reconciliation bill, but the IRA tax credits still went away

penny wise for pound foolish

[Winehole23]

electricity prices are rising twice as fast as inflation, but Trump's nostalgic revanchism is subsidizing oil, natural gas and coal

leaving the US behind in the global transition to a cheaper technical base and depriving the US of the opportunity to lead it


The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA) was signed into law on July 4th. The final legislation contains policies that would increase oil and gas leasing, cut fossil fuel royalty rates, repeal clean energy tax credits, and delay funding for agricultural and forestry conservation. The law will harm America by cutting new electricity capacity additions, increasing consumer power prices, and reducing U.S. GDP and job growth:


Power generation capacity will fall 340 gigawatts by 2035, raising costs to meet growing demand and damaging industrial competitiveness
Wholesale electricity prices will increase 25 percent by 2030 and 74 percent by 2035; electricity rates paid by consumers will increase between 9-18 percent by 2035
Household energy costs will increase $170 annually by 2035
America loses $980 billion in cumulative GDP through the budget reconciliation window
Workers suffer 760,000 lost jobs by 2030

https://energyinnovation.org/report/updated-economic-impacts-of-u-s-senate-passed-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-energy-provisions/

[Winehole23]

A U.S. analyst of Chinese technology said that the country has already solved its energy problem — at least in terms of power for its AI infrastructure. Rui Ma, founder of Tech Buzz China, posted on X (https://x.com/ruima/status/1955040979259650267) that the country’s massive investments in advanced hydropower and nuclear technologies meant that its “electricity supply is secure and inexpensive.” This is in contrast to the U.S., where many AI data centers are disrupting its electricity grid and supply (https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/u-s-ai-boom-is-completely-upending-the-electricity-market-small-businesses-and-households-could-foot-the-bill-as-industry-watchers-warn-of-sharp-price-increases), resulting in a lack of supply and price increases for every user.https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/ai-experts-warn-that-china-is-miles-ahead-of-the-us-in-electricity-generation-lack-of-supply-and-infrastructure-threatens-the-uss-long-term-ai-plans

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreiaf7qgyjdpu5vavmmdxi5mdsqwcqle5vpawcewdyiwxg hvyi6irpm@jpeg
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[Winehole23]

Texas grid strained by weak investment and growing data center demand

Commies at OilPrice.com suggest regulatory protection for residential consumers


The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) warned in November that the 24/7 energy demand of data centres will make it increasingly difficult to maintain sufficient electricity supply during times of high demand, such as if the temperature drops to an extreme low.

During a severe winter storm, Texas’ power demand could rise to as much as 85.3 GW. While the state’s 92.6 GW electricity capacity would normally be enough to power this demand, the available power could decrease to roughly 69.7 GW during a severe weather event, meaning a deficit of over 15 GW.

In a recent analysis, NERC stated (https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/22/texas-data-center-ai-ercot-blackout-power-outage.html), “Strong load growth from new data centres and other large industrial end users is driving higher winter electricity demand forecasts and contributing to continued risk of supply shortfalls.” It went on to say that while Texas will experience elevated risk during extreme winter weather, but the grid will remain stable during normal peak demand.

Over 120 GW of projects have requested to be connected to the Texas grid, marking a 170 percent increase since January requests. Approximately 73 percent of these projects are data centres, according to ERCOT. If all these data centres are built, it would equate to the average annual power consumption of almost 154 million homes. However, experts believe that it is unlikely for the massive project pipeline to be developed in its entirety, as there is simply not enough power to serve it.

Years of underinvestment in the U.S. grid, a lack of preparedness from utilities, and the rise in demand for data centres could lead to a power deficit if Texas, or another state, is hit by severe weather this winter. This demonstrates just how dramatically the tech sector is changing the landscape of power demand through data centre development. It also implies the need for stronger regulations to ensure that the electricity supply is sufficient and stable enough to meet demand before approving new projects.
https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Americas-Fragile-Grid-Faces-a-Perfect-Storm-Ahead-of-Winter.html

[Winehole23]

bad weather coming this weekend


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:fxvwbqszgz2udjgufwwywppf/bafkreidksqevg6zoh57lwppoultiqdykitoppvmkvuxug2gj3 22qk2cy74@jpeg

[Winehole23]

ERCOT expresses confidence and maybe it should -- solar and battery storage have made the Texas grid more reliable


As fears grow around the impending wintry weather expected this weekend, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is now issuing a warning to Texans across the state. ERCOT has issued a Weather Watch from Saturday, January 24, through Tuesday, January 27 due to "forecasted below-freezing temperatures with the possibility of frozen precipitation, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves," the company said in a news release.

Despite the warning, the release says energy grid conditions are expected to be normal.



"ERCOT is monitoring weather conditions closely and will deploy all available tools to manage the grid, continuing a reliability-first approach to operations," ERCOT wrote in the release. "In anticipation of the extreme cold weather, ERCOT is coordinating preparation efforts with the Texas Energy Reliability Council, the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the Texas Division of Emergency Management and other state agencies, as well as with Market Participants."


https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/weather/article/winter-storm-21307004.php

[Winehole23]

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https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/texas-grid-solar-coal-21282343.php

[Winehole23]

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[Winehole23]

decarbonization is already happening


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ayknqjjp6qv6njxnuxbscaeh/bafkreic4umabsuqjzznh3sklpuj7v7coro3r7cvlci3ise4tl 2sr74cpii@jpeg

[Winehole23]

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[Winehole23]

bad weather coming this weekend


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:fxvwbqszgz2udjgufwwywppf/bafkreidksqevg6zoh57lwppoultiqdykitoppvmkvuxug2gj3 22qk2cy74@jpeghttps://www.fox4news.com/news/ted-cruz-spotted-plane-laguna-beach-ahead-texas-winter-storm

[Winehole23]

https://texasstormchasers.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/4A-2.png

[Winehole23]

https://texasstormchasers.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/5A-1.png

https://texasstormchasers.com/weather/arctic-cold-winter-storm-threat-texas-weekend/

[Winehole23]

be prepared for local outages, especially in the northern 2/3 of the state


An ERCOT Weather Watch is an advance notification of forecasted significant weather with higher electrical demand and the potential for lower reserves. No action is needed but ERCOT encourages all Texans to sign up for grid condition notifications through the Texas Advisory and Notification System (TXANS) (https://www.ercot.com/txans?utm_source=release&utm_medium=media&utm_campaign=weather-watch-jan21&utm_term=txans). Texans can also monitor real-time and extended grid conditions at ercot.com (https://www.ercot.com/?utm_source=release&utm_medium=media&utm_campaign=weather-watch-jan21&utm_term=website).

[Winehole23]

if there's ice on the road, people need to know

encouraging staff to refer to ice as freezing rain is inaccurate at best, deadly at worst

https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/ap26022004160287-20260123174712461.jpg?c=original&q=w_1041,c_fill


Homeland Security officials have urged disaster response staff at the Federal Emergency Management Agency to avoid using the word “ice” in public messaging about the massive winter storm barreling toward much of the United States, according to two sources familiar with the directive.
The concern is that the word could spark confusion or online mockery, given the ongoing controversy surrounding US Immigration and Customs Enforcement — also known as “ICE.”

The guidance, informally delivered to a group at FEMA Thursday by officials from the Department of Homeland Security – which oversees both FEMA and ICE – comes as states across the South brace for potentially devastating ice accumulations, with some areas expecting a quarter -inch or more.

Officials told staff they worry that certain phrasing – like “watch out for ice” – could be misinterpreted or quickly turned into internet fodder, especially as ICE operations remain a flashpoint in cities like Minneapolis and beyond. That would take away from the purpose of the messages, meant to protect people in danger over the next few days, the officials said.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/23/politics/fema-ice-storm-memes

[Winehole23]

lol DHS urging FEMA to lie about the weather

[ChumpDumper]

lol DHS afraid of memes

[Winehole23]

softest bitches in the world