A conference taking place at the SMU Cox Maguire Energy Institute is looking at the future of energy distribution in the United States. "Energy Outlook '23" started Wednesday.
Panels have included the future of LNG, nuclear power and energy security.
A panel Thursday was called, "Grid Reliability in the Age of Renewables."
Brad Jones, who served as interim chief executive officer of ERCOT for about 16 months after the blackouts in 2021, answered questions on the panel along with Irving-based Vistra Corp Chief Executive Jim Burke and Midcontinent Independent Systems Operator executive Brian Tulloh.
"We've got to have a comprehensive solution because Texas has all the resources, natural and otherwise, to, I think, make this work," Burke said.
The three said Texas should try to reach a balance between renewable energy and other sources like natural gas. They said options like wind and solar will not replace natural gas entirely.
Tulloh said his territory stretches from Montana to Louisiana, but in 2020, wind production dropped across the entire system for a week.
"Usually that diversity means the wind's blowing someplace, but we had a full week where it was essentially zero and 40 hours where it was zero or negative," he said. "It was a draw on the system to keep things warm.'
The three said during those periods, generators need to keep producing enough power to protect the current load, and natural gas can provide more flexibility.
"You've got to guarantee to the customer they're going to get the product when they need it," Burke said.
Jones, the former ERCOT interim CEO, says Texas has the tenth biggest power grid in the world. He said the state should have the ability to balance renewables with options like natural gas that could be used on short notice.
He said Texas is drawing interest from more renewable power producers.
"More than any other state, this is the state they want to do business in," Jones said.
But he said grid reliability is "not a future problem. It's a today problem." He said Texas has already taken steps to prevent rolling blackouts.
Jones said power generators have responded to increased weatherization rules passed in 2021 that added additional fines for plants that are not prepared for weather. He said about 98% of plants passed their inspection.
He said Texas also has additional plants that would be able to come online on short notice. Jones says the state and providers have honed messages to consumers to provide clearer information, and consumers have continued responding to requests for conservation before situations become critical.
Last year, he said there were eight cases where Texas could have fallen into emergency conditions without having taken those steps. The state has three levels of emergency conditions with the third emergency level starting controlled outages.
Jones said Texas is also working to improve interconnectivity with the other grids serving the U.S. He says a project is currently underway that would make two thousand megawatts available from Mississippi and Alabama.
Currently, he said Texas has connections with the eastern grid providing about 800 megawatts. He said an issue preventing additional power flow is the type of connection the grids have.
Jones said Texas is working to maintain existing generation while planning for future population growth and balancing growth in solar and wind.
"We're preparing for the future," he said. "Texas is the location where most every developer wants to bring their solar and wants to bring their wind."
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