Four Years After Texas Blackout: Grid Reliability Still Questioned
Four years after the deadly 2021 Texas blackout, doubts persist about the reliability of the state's power grid. While the state government has boosted natural gas power generation, Texas's isolation from neighboring grids leaves it entirely reliant on its own supply. A recent grid forecast even suggests demand could outstrip supply as early as 2026. Experts are skeptical, arguing the forecast overestimates demand growth, partly due to the inclusion of "speculative" demand projections in legislation. While Texas has made some progress in generating capacity and infrastructure, such as weatherizing power plants and developing solar power, a lack of energy efficiency improvements, inadequate oversight of natural gas supply, and refusal to interconnect with neighboring grids leave the reliability of the Texas grid facing long-term challenges. A resident who lost her mother in the 2021 blackout even chose to flee to Florida this February, highlighting the lingering anxieties about the grid's dependability.