The latest energy news from The Texas Tribune.
Opponents said the legislation wasn’t strong enough to stop highly radioactive materials from coming to Texas and instead amounted to a financial giveaway to a West Texas nuclear waste company. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/dd4bd0dadfde4a8beefe6f3a7e5f5240/Andrews%20Waste%20ELH%20TT%2015.jpg)
Lawmakers argue that spreading costs through the whole market — which will get passed through to consumers’ bills — is necessary to stabilize the state’s electricity market and prevent even higher costs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/632aefdfaa590166eb4fd8eb523a961d/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20SF%20TT%2051.jpg)
State lawmakers are now trying to change the way ERCOT is governed by requiring members to live in Texas and giving more board seats to political appointees — changes that experts say may do little to improve the power grid. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/4b853814e0d36d6e94e1e9f149f62fc8/ATX%20Snowstorm%20Drone%20MG%20TT%2006.jpg)
With the clock on the Legislative session ticking down, the Texas House moved to help fund power plant upgrades for extreme weather. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/acc3cee734ba2d72014bd6ab2e2012a9/Austin%20Power%20Plant%20EG%20TT%2001.jpg)
“Oil and gas is the lifeblood of the Texas economy,” state Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, said on the House floor Monday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/0a9ccc8511b81ce7524abc1c338b6139/Oil%20Gas%20Pump%20Jacks%20JF%20TT%2002.jpg)
On some of the major issues facing the Texas Legislature — police behavior, expanding Medicaid or allowing unlicensed carry of handguns — voters and lawmakers aren't always in sync. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/83e0671ef088233c44f659119f483e64/UT-TT%20Legislature.jpg)
They used their car to stay warm when a winter storm brought down the Texas power grid. In a state that doesn't require carbon monoxide alarms in homes, they had no warning they were poisoning themselves. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3c735644b614d9c2aa2dd3d3831a7712/20210429%20tx%20co%20og.jpg)
An updated analysis of the Texas power crisis shows lost natural gas power generation was the most significant component of the February outages. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/92c870a059ae8609f9d773bcc15b87c6/Wind%20Energy%20Power%20Texas%20CS%20TT%2003.jpg)
In the weeks since the winter storm, both the Electric Reliability Council of Texas and the Public Utility Commission, the regulatory body that oversees it, have been lambasted for failures in preparing for and responding to the storm. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/4f8db9b2e602c5dfe8255f19aff8b720/ERCOT%20Command%20Center%20REUTERS%20TT%2001.jpg)
The lower chamber gave initial approval Monday to a series of bills responding to this year’s catastrophic power outages during a deadly winter storm. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a4177d8efb3f6be842c54460aae40d9a/Winter%20Storm%20Day%20Five%20JV%20TT%2018.jpg)
As lawmakers advance bills targeting renewable energy sources, experts call the efforts “discriminatory” and “politically motivated.” Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/26462eafe44174d8a01638a6eade86eb/Wind%20Turbines%20Permian%20Basin%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
Lawmakers have only six weeks left on their calendar, and most of the big things they set out to do aren’t finished. A session that started very quietly will end with a sprint. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e927960714067000bc46590d734dedda/Lege%20File%20March%202%20JV%20TT%2025.jpg)
Revenue for 10 emergency power plants would come from a monthly charge on Texans’ power bills. The proposal is just one of several bills lawmakers are considering after February's massive power outages. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/2ffb3b1f7c48bd6a6e16d0215a5d852d/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20JV%20Feb%2016%20TT%2036.jpg)
The state's grid operator included extreme weather scenarios in its early summer assessment and found that a combination of a severe drought, heat wave and low winds could lead to more power outages. Experts warn this summer could be hot and dry, enhanced by climate change. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a31d9ccb0d4122417d85ab61e928da41/Drought%20Fires%20Lake%20Travis%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
A higher than expected amount of plant outages for maintenance created tight conditions for Texas' power grid. It returned to normal late Tuesday evening. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/013aaca3f8b4cc2b217bafbed730cda0/ERCOT%20Command%20Center%20REUTERS%20TT%2002.jpg)
The announcement came shortly after the Texas Senate Nominations Committee on Monday voted unanimously in favor of accepting Will McAdams’ nomination to serve on the PUC board. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c73061658e60a0b9e21d40135ce397aa/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20SF%20TT%2039.jpg)
Nearly two dozen lawsuits allege that failures by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the operator of the state's main power grid, led to the wrongful death of a family member. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8db115a2f81143f4c5adf6ef63421462/REDO%20ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20JV%20TT%2010.jpg)
The two Texans' new bill would authorize the federal government to offer grants to states in support of weatherizing the state's electrical grids. It comes in response to February's deadly winter storm and sweeping power outages. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6b9201dddc08d1da5e81c40866e56dfb/ATX%20Drone%20Snow%20Storm%20I35%20TT%20MG%2003.jpg)
A bill advancing in the House seeks to ban spent nuclear fuel, one of the most dangerous types of radioactive waste, from coming to Texas. Full Story
Members of the Texas Railroad Commission were quick to blame renewable energy for power outages across the state. All sources of energy struggled to produce power during the storm. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/750ff833178507892c33f392711c6c35/RBJ%20Center%20Storm%20MM%20TT%2024.jpg)