ERCOT, renewable energy developers break stalemate

AUSTIN – The Houston Chronicle reports the operator of the Texas power grid said it’s reached “a reasonable compromise” with renewable energy developers after more than a year of stalemate on technical issues with some solar, wind and battery storage resources it warned could conceivably lead to “catastrophic grid failure.” Clean energy companies fought the initial requirements the Electric Reliability Council of Texas wanted to impose, cautioning they could be forced to shut down large swaths of the fast-growing wind, solar and battery resources on the Texas grid if made to install expensive hardware upgrades. The parties agreed in August that owners of clean energy resources on the ERCOT grid must instead implement all available software and settings changes to meet the new requirements. This proposal is expected to fix the “vast majority” of problems found in three of the worst failures of the past few years, which prompted the rules change in the first place, according to clean energy developers and an industry consultant who studied those events.

The new rule will “improve reliability over time” as resources comply with its terms, ERCOT spokesperson Trudi Webster wrote in an email. The Public Utility Commission of Texas, which regulates ERCOT, issued an order approving the new rule last month. “While this will be an enormous lift for (clean energy resource) owners, it is far better than the alternative,” Eric Goff, an industry consultant who emerged as the lead negotiator for renewable developers, wrote in a social media post. Clean energy resources – particularly solar and batteries – have grown rapidly on the Texas power grid in recent years as the technology becomes less expensive and federal incentives boost domestic manufacturing and development. They’ve been credited with adding a healthy cushion of supply to the grid, especially on the hottest summer days, lowering electricity costs and helping decarbonize electricity generation, the third-largest contributor of climate-warming emissions in Texas