A Texas proposal to use billions of dollars of state funds to build new power plants is “dangerous” to the competitive power market needed to drive investment, the former chief of the state grid said.
(Bloomberg) — A Texas proposal to use billions of dollars of state funds to build new power plants is “dangerous” to the competitive power market needed to drive investment, the former chief of the state grid said.
Last week, Texas senators voted in favor of creating an energy insurance fund to build natural gas-fired power plans able to provide back up during emergencies. It’s meant to avoid a repeat of the deadly blackouts during the February 2021 storm. The plan still needs approval from the House and governor.
Brad Jones, who served as the grid’s interim chief executive officer after the storm, said the state legislature already gave regulators at the Public Utility Commission of Texas all the tools it needs to boost revenues to generators within the existing power market operated by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. The PUC’s proposal to launch payouts is “the absolute best proposal” to drive investments in new gas plants while enabling more wind and solar to come online, he said.
“What the Senate pushed through the other day does concern me quite a bit; it’s dangerous, and for the state to step in would really disrupt the market,” Jones, now retired, said in telephone interview. “At this point in time, many of these bills I don’t think are really necessary to get the market where they need to be to be more resilient and still accepting of new renewable resources. I don’t think much has to change.”
Read More: Texas Grid Proposals Spur Calpine to Build New Gas Plants
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