If anyone wants the actual reason, from someone who was inside the wind industry AND oil industry from 2009-2014:
No, it wasn't because wind/solar froze. It has very very little to do with that. The Texas power grid has multiple independent parts. The SPP, Southwest Power Pool, forms a kind of ring around the outside of Texas. It's fine, no problems delivering. ERCOT, on the other hand, is strained and has outages. Why? Because ERCOT doesn't have the connection/ability to get power from neighboring states and grids. ERCOT didn't have the foresight/infrastructure to borrow power in spikes like this and it bit them in the ass. As a result, ERCOT sent its PR statements out saying it's because of green energy in order to avoid looking like dunces.
It worked, and now everyone is parroting how wind/solar failed and that's why Texas has blackouts. It flat-out is not true. It's because the grid can't borrow power and handle a very temporary spike. It's ERCOT's fault, not wind energy.
And this is from someone (me) who will argue all day long about how wind and solar aren't viable long-term power sources and you NEED fossil fuel/nuclear plants to do the heavy lifting. I'm no green energy shill, I'm the opposite.
If anyone wants the actual reason, from someone who was inside the wind industry AND oil industry from 2009-2014:
No, it wasn't because wind/solar froze. It has very very little to do with that. The Texas power grid has multiple independent parts. The SPP, Southwest Power Pool, forms a kind of ring around the outside of Texas. It's fine, no problems delivering. ERCOT, on the other hand, is strained and has outages. Why? Because ERCOT doesn't have the connection/ability to get power from neighboring states and grids. ERCOT didn't have the foresight/infrastructure to borrow power in spikes like this and it bit them in the ass. As a result, ERCOT sent its PR statements out saying it's because of green energy in order to avoid looking like dunces.
It worked, and now everyone is parroting how wind/solar failed and that's why Texas has blackouts. It flat-out is not true. It's because the grid can't borrow power and handle a very temporary spike. It's ERCOT's fault, not wind energy.
And this is from someone (me) who will argue all day long about how wind and solar aren't viable long-term power sources and you NEED fossil fuel/nuclear plants to do the heavy lifting. I'm no green energy shill, I'm the opposite.
So there it is for anyone who cares.