15 days of snowboarding since mid january... some of it great. May go again in the next few days. When it rains in the north during the winter... its usually excellent for Mammoth or Tahoe the only thing making me angry is that I hit new account highs last week and just gave back a few percent. I was short and got hammered.
texastribune.org/2021/03/05/texas-ercot-electric-bills/ Texas will not fix ERCOT's $16 billion power billing mistake The Public Utility Commission ignored its independent monitor’s recommendation to retroactively reduce the market price for power for at least part of the week of the winter storm. “I totally get how it looks like you’re protecting consumers [by readjusting electric prices],” D’Andrea said Friday during a PUC meeting. “But I promise you you’re not.” D’Andrea added that a retroactive decision would have winners and losers: “You don’t know who you’re hurting. And you think you’re protecting the consumer, and it turns out you’re bankrupting [someone else].” D’Andrea, who was elevated to chair this week by Gov. Greg Abbott, and PUC Commissioner Shelly Botkin could have decided Friday to order ERCOT to follow Potomac Economics’ recommendation — a move that potentially could have shaved billions of dollars off of what the grid operator overcharged power companies. State Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, was hoping for a different decision by the PUC on Friday. “Keeping the market at an artificial $9,000 for 32 hrs cost $16B,” Springer tweeted, adding that the Potomac Economics report “says those hours should be repriced, I agree.”
Texas power retailer Griddy heads toward bankruptcy filing The Electric Reliability Council of Texas revoked Griddy's operating rights https://www.foxbusiness.com/energy/texas-power-retailer-griddy-heads-toward-bankruptcy-filing Upstart Texas power retailer Griddy Energy LLC, devoid of customers and facing litigation after charging hefty amounts during the winter freeze that swept the state last month, is planning to file for bankruptcy, people familiar with the matter said. Griddy is preparing to wind down its business through a bankruptcy filing that could come within days, according to people familiar with the matter. Texas regulators have already barred Griddy from the state power market after the company passed steep increases in electricity prices on to customers during last month’s energy crisis. While most consumers in Texas buy electricity at fixed rates from municipal utilities and power retailers, Griddy offered access to variable electricity prices that skyrocketed during the extreme winter weather. When spot prices briefly shot up to $9,000 per megawatt hour during the winter freeze, compared with an average last year of less than $22, Griddy customers complained of receiving exorbitant bills, part of a broader backlash over how regulators and market participants handled the weather emergency. epresentatives for Griddy didn’t respond to requests for comment on Sunday. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which operates the state’s grid, revoked Griddy’s operating rights and transferred its customers elsewhere last month after it defaulted on required payments. In a message to customers after Ercot’s decision, Griddy said, “we have always been transparent and customer-centric at every step. We wanted to continue to fight for our members to get relief and that hasn’t changed.” In that message, the company also said it was hopeful that state and federal governments would “provide relief for all Texans” and that it was committed to providing credit for any relief we receive back to our customers on a dollar-for-dollar basis." Ercot said Thursday that it was short nearly $3.1 billion in required payments from market participants, including more than $29 million from Griddy. The Texas attorney general is suing Griddy, saying it engaged in deceptive trade practices by issuing excessive bills “with little to no warning” and auto-debiting customer accounts, despite advertising itself as a better option for customers than traditional retailers. A Griddy customer said in a proposed class-action lawsuit last month that her bill, typically between $200 to $250 a month, rose in February to $10,995. Griddy is being advised on its planned liquidation by law firm Baker Botts LLP, people familiar with the matter said. As part of the bankruptcy process, Griddy plans to waive certain customer charges associated with the winter storm, a person familiar with the matter said. A Baker Botts representative didn’t respond to a request for comment on Sunday. Griddy has previously said it notified customers before the worst of the weather event that they might be better off switching providers for a short time to avoid exposure to wholesale prices. The grid operator has issued invoices for power purchased at elevated rates during the winter storm by municipal utilities, electric cooperatives and electricity retailers, which are now trying to figure out how to pass on the costs and in some cases disputing the calculations. So far, invoices from the grid operator have caused two major bankruptcy filings, by energy cooperative Brazos Electric Power Cooperative Inc. and retailer Just Energy Group Inc. Another retailer, Entrust Energy Inc., has also had its rights to participate in the market revoked and was listed by the grid operator on Thursday as owing more than $290 million. An independent market monitor has flagged $16 billion in overcharges during the severe weather and urged regulators to conduct a repricing to provide relief to companies and municipalities that purchased the expensive power. On Thursday, the monitor said it believed the most that likely could be clawed back for the benefit of consumers is $3.2 billion.
Texas snowstorm death toll double what was originally reported — and could be even higher: officials https://www.rawstory.com/texas-power-outage-2651214685/ On Thursday, The Daily Beast reported that officials have doubled their estimate of the death toll for the freak snowstorm that paralyzed the state of Texas in February — and that even more could be reported as the investigation continues. "The Texas Department of State Health Services said that the number of deaths, initially 57, was in actuality 111 and is still expected to rise as state investigators continue their work," reported Blake Montgomery. "The majority of the fatalities were from hypothermia, but lack of access to medical care, traffic accidents, and fires also played a part. Carbon monoxide poisoning, often caused by sitting in a car in a closed garage, was also a culprit." According to Dallas County chief medical examiner Jeffrey Barnard, "We'll probably never have a really accurate number." The storm swept across much of the country, but was particularly disastrous in Texas, which has an independent power grid that had not been properly winterized. Millions across the state lost power and water, and some were left burning their furniture to stay warm. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has come under heavy criticism for falsely suggesting wind and solar failures were a significant factor in the power failures. He has pledged reforms to ERCOT, the organization that manages the state's grid.
ERCOT: Thanks for the cash, suckers. Enjoy freezing in the winter and dying of heat exhaustion in the summer.
Enjoy your summer blackouts Texas... ERCOT preparing for record high energy demand this summer https://www.fox7austin.com/news/ercot-preparing-for-record-high-energy-demand-this-summer The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) says it is hopeful it will be able to meet the high energy demand this summer following a devastating winter. (More at above url)
Texas gov knew of natural gas shortages days before blackout, blamed wind anyway Official's phone logs offer blow-by-blow account of the disaster as it unfolded. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy...ages-days-before-blackout-blamed-wind-anyway/ Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s office knew of looming natural gas shortages on February 10, days before a deep freeze plunged much of the state into blackouts, according to documents obtained by E&E News and reviewed by Ars. Abbott’s office first learned of the likely shortfall in a phone call from then-chair of the Public Utility Commission of Texas DeAnne Walker. In the days leading up to the power outages that began on February 15, Walker and the governor’s office spoke 31 more times. Walker also spoke with regulators, politicians, and utilities dozens of times about the gas curtailments that threatened the state’s electrical grid. The PUC chair’s diary for the days before the outage shows her schedule dominated by concerns over gas curtailments and the impact they would have on electricity generation. Before and during the disaster, she was on more than 100 phone calls with various agencies and utilities regarding gas shortages. After the blackouts began, Abbott appeared on Fox News to falsely assert that wind turbines were the driving force behind the outages. Wind turbines were a factor, but only a small one. Wind in Texas doesn’t produce as much power in the winter, and regulators don’t typically rely on wind turbines to provide significant amounts of power. Instead, regulators anticipated that natural gas and coal power plants would meet demand. In public, Bill Magness, then-CEO of ERCOT, the state’s electric grid regulator, didn’t seem concerned about the approaching weather. In a virtual meeting on February 9, Magness said, “As those of you in Texas know, we do have a cold front coming this way... Operations has issued an operating condition notice just to make sure everyone is up to speed with their winterization and we’re ready for the several days of pretty frigid temperatures to come our way.” During the two-and-a-half-hour public portion of the meeting, Magness devoted just 40 seconds to the unusual weather. (More at above url)