'Things Are Going to Break': Texas Power Plants Are Running Nonstop

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

(Bloomberg) -- As searing Texas heat drives power demand to record highs, the state’s grid operator is ordering plants to run at a historic pace, often forcing them to put off maintenance to keep cranking out electricity. That’s helped keep the lights on, for now, but the short-term focus is putting even more stress on a system that’s already stretched near the limit.

Twice in the past week, officials have called on Texans to limit electricity use during scorching afternoons as demand inched perilously close to overwhelming supply. Now, there are growing concerns over how long power plants can maintain the grueling pace as they run nonstop, according to Michele Richmond, executive director of Texas Competitive Power Advocates, a generator industry group.

“Things are going to break,” she said. “We have an aging fleet that’s being run harder than it’s ever been run.”

To meet the surge in power demand, Ercot, the grid operator, is leaning heavily on a mechanism called reliability unit commitments to ensure there’s enough supply. Plants are being regularly ordered to go into service, or remain in operation, and skip any scheduled maintenance. The measure also overrides shutdowns for economic factors or any other issues. And Ercot is using the rule more than ever before as the state battles bout after bout of extreme weather.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/things-going-break-texas-power-145408946.html

Who needs any stinking maintenance? Just pray harder,

[roamer65]

1. Isn't climate change wonderful?

[SergeStorms]

24. Isn't Governor Abbott.....

and the GQP controlled Texas legislature wonderful?

Who needs to upgrade the power grid? Not Texas! They'll pray the heat away. 🙏

I'll wager each and every one of them has a whole-house generator or other backup power system so they'll never have a single bead of sweat on their stern, godly, furrowed brows.

[SouthernDem4ever]

2. blame it on the windmills

they aren't turning fast enough.

[efhmc]

12. Actually the turbines are hardly turning at all.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=16920866

[Hekate]

3. Deferred maintenance is a universal prescription for catastrophe....

Way to go, Ercot. Good luck, Texans.

[localroger]

6. Yep. Just watch an I Do Cars video on YouTube

...and imagine the shattered piston and hole in the crankcase x 1000.

[dalton99a]

4. Abbott: Texas Power Plants Have Tremendous Capacity for Self-Healing

"because they are in Texas"

[LiberalFighter]

5. Why don't they require them to vacation in Cancun?

It works for Cruz.

[LiberalFighter]

7. Why don't they use one room in the home and shut the doors for the others?

And turn off all the lights especially when they have sex.

The kids can sleep under the bed.

[Xolodno]

8. I know people who recently moved to Texas....

...think evangelical type. They love that they got out of California, liberals, etc. and bought a six bedroom huge house in Texas.

First thing that came to my mind, how on earth are they going to clean and maintain it when its only two of them. And to heat and cool a place that size has to be astronomical. Not to mention, its also astronomical to insure a place that is frequented by tornados, hail and hurricanes.

And then of course, I read an article from time to time of people leaving Texas because they discovered the cost of living is actually more than advertised.

Won't be long before they have the same problems we had in California with "Brown outs".

Heh, I have another right wing friend who moved to Utah and is always posting how great it is. I don't say anything. I know the great Salt Lake is about to become an ecological disaster and they will have to cut back on water usage. While visiting family in another state, we blew through Utah and being cheap as I am, didn't splurge for satellite radio on the rental car. Listened to local radio and heard that Utah Lake had an algae bloom. Not a word about it from him.

Putting one's head in the sand does not solve problems.

[onetexan]

35. About the cost of living in TX - it depends on where u live

Austin is an expensive city housing-wise, & other cities as well, but overall not as ridiculous as california. Big houses are common here in TX for much less than those in CA.
Other costs of living (gas, food etc.) have risen because of inflation, like everywhere in the country. We live in a county where home prices are high, but we also live way below our means.
Bottom line it's a matter of perspective. Many ppl have relocated here to TX due to job market, economic reasons, to be w family or just to be in TX (austin & DFW have attracted alot of young ppl for example), and are darn happy about it.

Much as i despise the fact TX is controlled by idiot conservatives my family & i love it here. Tx is like a country in its own right. It's so vast & expansive & different depending on the area ur in. Many cities are rural and trumpers abound. The larger metroplexes, however, are predominantly blue, diverse & full of liberals, with wonderful suburbs & exurbs.

[blogslug]

9. Mike Collier with a helpful Twitter video explainer

Link to tweet

[UTUSN]

20. Kick for this Dem's visibility, at DU at least.

[gay texan]

10. Hence why I have a stockpile of diesel

I KNEW this shit was gonna happen.

Abbott doesn't have the guts to make needed changes to the power grid.

That stupid motherfucking asshole just wants money and campaign contributions. Ignore the real problems and focus on trans kids and gun rights.

He passed the fucking cost of the winter disaster to the consumers which in turn caused the electric rate to go up. But these stupid knuckleheads in this fucking state think, and I'm not making this up, electric vehicles are the source of the grid problem.

I've got two diesel generators: an old school Onan 6.5kw that i rescued from a junkyard and a Chinese diesel 5kw, that was also rescued from a junkyard. It will keep the house going on the basics and cool one room. Again, I knew this shit was gonna happen. I filled every available can I have with diesel.

But what about the elderly? What about the poor? What about the people who dont have the mechanical and electrical skills that I have?

They pay the price in this game. They are the pawns in Abbott's game.

[JCMach1]

19. Why I have a voltage inverter for my Chevy Volt

[OMGWTF]

25. I love my Volt. It's really fun and cheap to drive.

[JCMach1]

47. If you hook it up right, can be used as a portable generator

[Bucky]

11. Here in Texas I've pushed my thermostat up to 80F

I still saw a couple of brownouts in my N'hood

If only we could figure out why God was punishing us with global warming, we could go stone those sinners and get a nice cold front to come through

[efhmc]

14. Both upstairs and down units are off. f Have an overhead fan going while I visit DU but

grew up with only an attic fan. Turn on the AC when I go to bed but usually have to use covers in the early morning even though the thermostat is set very high. Then I turn it off. Live in a really old house which was made for the Texas heat. Worked outside in the heat for several hours today but was in the shade and the wind was blowing. I was never uncomfortable except if I walked on the sidewalk without my Crocs.

[Xipe Totec]

23. Did the same. My spouse rebelled.

Down to 77 again. We'll see where this leads.

[Bucky]

36. Hang in there, amigo

Think cool thoughts

[Autumn]

13. That's Texas.

[Bristlecone]

15. Everything is bigger in Texas! F-ups, preventable catastrophes, electric bills

You name it. It’s bigger

Yee Haw!

[NickB79]

16. My 12 yr old daughter was just telling me how she's planning on moving to Canada

Bear in mind, we live in Minnesota. One of the best states in the US to survive catastrophic climate change.

We're still not north enough for her to think she's safe. Let that sink in. We have utterly failed the younger generations.

[roamer65]

22. The big problem will be migration northward.

We in the Great Lakes region had better start planning now on how we will restrict it.

I was on southern shore of Lake Superior earlier this week. It was 70 deg F and fresh water as far as the eye could see.

[former9thward]

28. Don't worry. The only migration is to the south and west.

With every census the U.S. center of population always moves in those two directions. No one is coming back...



But if you do figure out a way to restrict movement please share. The states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho tried to restrict people from CA moving there in the 70s and 80s and failed. AZ tried the same later on and failed.

[roamer65]

29. You are wrong on people not coming back.

You specifically say no one is coming back.

Someone I directly know left TX because of the abortion ban because he didn’t want his daughters around for that shit. He also mentioned the last winter storm clusterfuck.

They came to MI.

[Buckeyeblue]

37. I agree. I think it will happen faster than people think

In Michigan, the cost of living is relatively low. And except for having to deal with winter (put on a coat and go). Our climate is pretty good.

As long as we can keep extremist views from dictating our way of life, I think we'll start seeing businesses and workers relocating.

[roamer65]

45. Once we pass the Roe v Wade ballot proposal, I see a lot of younger women coming here.

Compared to the western states we have a lower cost of living, but it is definitely increasing substantially in the Metro Detroit and Grand Rapids areas.

[ellie]

42. My husband and

I are from NW Ohio and currently live in Colorado. The water wars will begin soon and this will be our last year here. We are returning east to either SW Michigan or back home.

[roamer65]

46. SW Michigan near the lakeshore is beautiful.

Pot is fully legal here and abortion is going to be fully legal after November. It won’t be much different from CO for you, except for plentiful and cheap fresh water.

[ellie]

48. I love the desert

but I really miss the water and the fall in the Midwest is glorious.

[former9thward]

17. 30% of TX power comes from wind turbines.

The problem with that is that during very hot periods the turbines do not operate well. So gas has to take their place. This is also a problem CA has had with their rolling blackouts. Both states need to go nuclear.

[OMGWTF]

26. Solar. The sun is the biggest nuclear reactor in our solar system.

[former9thward]

27. Solar does not work when the sun is not out.

Mass battery storage has not been developed yet.

[Kablooie]

31. Actually mass battery storage HAS been developed.

Tesla makes giant industrial slze batteries.
I know everyone hates Musk because he’s such a jerk but his companies are all producing groundbreaking products.

https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-powerpack-uses-2017-7

[Deuce]

34. Thanks for the info...

[former9thward]

40. I am not talking about individual use.

I am talking about massive solar farms. What is needed to power cities. That is why you don't see it.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

50. It certainly doesn't have to be 'all or nothing'. You know about "off peak".

[former9thward]

51. Ok, show me a solar powered city.

Just solar power.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

52. False dichotomy. See previous response.

[former9thward]

53. The poster I replied to said the answer to power was not nuclear, it was the sun.

Its not for the reasons I have mentioned. Show me where it is in practical use on a mass scale like a city.

Nuclear is answer.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

54. Again, you want all or nothing and it's not like that ...

It's in use on a mass scale right now. It's global.

Texas is struggling to match demand during the day. Consider the effect if many buildings carried solar panels. There is a farm not terribly far from me where the guy grows crops under a few acres of solar panels up on 8 ft posts. There are towns in Germany with solar panels on almost every roof. We have thousands of acres of parking lots that need shade.

Solar power doesn't have to provide it all, right now. It can be utilized immediately to cover shortages, even without storage.

In Germany, Solar-Powered Homes Are Really Catching On

On sunny days, the photovoltaic panels supply all of the Paris household’s electricity needs and charge their hybrid car’s electric battery too. Once these basics are covered, the rooftop-generated power feeds into the stationary battery until it’s full—primed for nighttime energy demand and cloudy days. Then, when the battery is topped off, the unit’s digital control system automatically redirects any excess energy into Berlin’s power grid, for which the Parises will be compensated by the local grid operator.

[Mr.Bill]

18. I have a brother-in-law who retired a few years ago.

His wife is also retired and they are pretty well-off. They lived their entire lives in Southern California. Neither of them follow politics very much and they are both Democrats.

So a few years ago, to save on state taxes they decide to move to Texas. They built a beautiful million dollar house in the DFW area. So they have been there for the last few years for all the bullshit going on in Texas. They also found out how high property taxes are there. So they sold that house and moved to...wait for it...

Florida. Like I said, they don't follow politics very much.

[moondust]

21. Climate change is a hoax in TX, right?

Cuz Big Oil said so?

Proof:

[Kablooie]

30. I wonder if Musk will regret moving all his operations to Texas?

Oh, come to think of it maybe not. Tesla also manufactures the Power Pack, Giant Industrial size batteries for power backup that are being installed all over the world. He’d certainly keep enough around to make sure his factories keep running.

[Initech]

32. Hey Texas! This is what you get for voting for stupid people!

[budkin]

33. Blame the "Green New Deal!"

I can see it once again!

[hatrack]

38. Don't forget heat spikes' negative impact on cooling water for fossil and nuclear plants

Scorching temperatures during the summer of 2018 forced a swathe of power plants across the world to reduce power or shut down temporarily, owing to warmer-than-usual temperatures of cooling water and other general heat-related issues. European countries from Scandinavia to Russia grappled with summer temperatures that were between 6C and 10C above the seasonal average. A blistering heatwave also affected a wide span of Asia and scorched parts of North America.

In France, where temperatures hit 40C (104F) in the Rhone Valley area, French utility EDF shut down the 1,335-MW Saint-Alban-1 unit, Bugey-2 and Bugey-3 (each 910 MW), and 920-MW Fessenheim-2 reactor, citing high temperatures in the Rhone and Rhine rivers. The closures sent power prices soaring in the country that relies on nuclear for 72.3% of its electricity production.

In Sweden, Vattenfall shut down the 900-MW Unit 2 at the four-unit Ringhals plant (Figure 2), as seawater temperatures exceeded 25C (77F), approaching maximum technical specifications on allowed cooling water temperature. “That the sea reaches so high temperature levels this year is very unusual, and that Swedish nuclear power plants need to reduce their output due to too warm sea water is something that only happens rarely. At Ringhals it has only happened at a few instances since the turn of the century,” the company said in a statement. Soaring temperatures also forced Vattenfall to reduce power at three boiling water reactors (BWRs) at its Forsmark plant.

EDIT

Factors such as temperature limits for discharging water could represent a loss of between 12% and 16% of the generating capacity of central and eastern U.S. power plants by the middle of the century. By 2030, water stress could prompt thermoelectric plants in Mediterranean regions to face up to 100% loss of generation capacity owing to high water temperatures, and similar strains could impact 27% of plants in the U.S. Generators also face a slew of increased operating costs, given the need for 50% to 100% more staff—and more generating capacity. The paper’s authors recommended boosting measures to manage peak demand, diversifying supply sources, as well as conducting vulnerability assessments and developing resilience plans for the energy sector both at a government and company level.

EDIT

https://www.powermag.com/intense-summer-heatwaves-rattle-worlds-power-plants/

[hunter]

41. Anyone building a power plant today...

... should probably plan for the worst case temperatures, drought, and sea level rise.

"Sooner than predicted" seems to be the new norm.

[hatrack]

44. "Sooner Than Predicted" - the evil twin of "Faster Than Expected"

.

[Johnny2X2X]

39. Migration.

There’s going to be large parts of the SW that are simply Uninhabitable. People are going to have to leave TX, AZ, and NM.

[FakeNoose]

43. Time for Gov. Abbott to RESIGN!

Texas deserves better.

[Autumn]

49. That's the Texas plan. They voted for it, they got it.

They can look for sympathy in the dictionary.