Utility Dive outlined Texas regulators' moves to implement ERCOT market changes, citing TAEBA's Suzanne Bertin on energy efficiency. Read snippets below and the full story here.
Generators and transmission operators will need to weatherize their systems ahead of winter as Texas regulators consider "monumental" market changes.
The Public Utility Commission of Texas voted Thursday to require generators and transmission providers to weatherize their plants and systems ahead of the upcoming winter, and regulators say a more robust year-round standard is also in development...
Unlike other grid operators, the Electric Reliabiltiy Council of Texas (ERCOT) operates only an energy market to meet customer demand and does not use a capacity market to ensure necessary resources will be available. Instead, the state depends on the promise of higher prices to incentivize generation...
"That is, in a nutshell, the same as a capacity market," said Suzanne Bertin, managing director of the Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA). Without taking a position on the idea, she added it was very likely to spur debate. "The details of capacity markets are constantly being debated. It's a never ending controversy," she said...
New analysis from ACEEE concluded residential energy efficiency and demand response programs could help Texas maintain reliability in extreme events. Deployed over five years, the group identified seven programs that could lower summer peaks by 7,650 MW and winter peaks by 11,400 MW, helping to eliminate the need for new generation.
"This continued lack of focus on energy efficiency is disappointing," TAEBA's Bertin said. "It is truly foundational to anything that we do in this market. ... We think that's a major failing if the commission does not move forward with definitely deepening the commitment to energy efficiency."