Batteries that store solar energy can replenish the Texas power grid
With temperatures climbing over 100 in much of the state, the Texas electric grid set an all-time record for energy demand Tuesday. It may very well do it again on Wednesday.
Despite the heat wave, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas has yet to ask people to conserve electricity. That’s a big change from 2023, when extreme weather and fear of low power reserves prompted ERCOT to issue 11 requests for conservation through the year.
Grid operators and energy experts are pointing to the rapid growth of solar power and grid-scale batteries as key reasons why residents haven’t been asked to conserve this month.
“We’ve seen significant additions of energy storage resources, solar resources and wind resources, with a few additions also on the gas side,” Pablo Vegas, CEO of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas said at an ERCOT board meeting Tuesday. “All of that has helped to contribute to less scarcity conditions.”
In fact, the growth of some of those energy sources has been downright record-breaking.
As the sun and heat bore down, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday brought the top three days for solar power production in the history of the state grid, according to the website Gridstatus.io, which tracks the performance of regional electricity transmission systems.
On Sunday, the top day for solar production, Texas solar farms produced 20,832 megawatts of power. It’s worth noting that this number does not include energy produced by rooftop arrays on homes and businesses.
Read more: Kut
