The recent winter storm in Texas left thousands of households without electric power in extremely cold temperatures. About 2.5 million Texans had to survive without power, and 1.3 million were in the Houston area only. The statewide number rose to 3.5 million, and power and water outages impacted daily lives. Read more here.
As Alberta has similar power grids to
Texas, people wonder if a Texas-like blackout is a possibility in Alberta. Here
we try to find the answer.
Are Renewable Energy Sources a Culprit?
Some people are blaming wind and solar
power for the outage. Others think that the key issues were languishing of
sufficient pipeline capacity and backup power generation maintenance.
It is a fact that wind and solar power are
quite unreliable and need backup power sources. So, Alberta's policymakers
would be smart to realize that the entire world needs power that can be
produced safely, reliably, and affordably. Too much dependence on renewable
sources of power might be a bad idea as we have massive oil, gas, and even coal
reserves.
The Similarities
There are many similarities between Texas
and Alberta's power grids. Both are historically based around fossil fuel
generation, and both are focusing more on wind and solar power. Both also have
limited electrical connections to their neighborhoods and, hence, have to
manage their reliability individually. Both also operate in an energy-only
market, according to which they pay competitive generators solely for the
energy they produce.
Though most of the North American continent
adds a layer of capacity payments to ensure there are ample power generating
capabilities to keep the lights or depend on a traditional, regulated system of
utilities, both Alberta and Texas have a lot of faith in the market and are
allowing wholesale power prices rise to astronomical levels.
The idea is that if they let the price
rise, the demand will fall in the short term, and new investment on generation
might be attracted to the market in the long run by producers who want to cash
in on rare and highly profitable scarcity events. It has worked well in the
last few years, and both Alberta's and Texas's power markets tend to result in
lower prices.
Now, questions are being raised regarding
whether the market design is offering reliability expected by the customers or
not.
Lessons Alberta Can Learn from the Texas
Blackout
Alberta and its policymakers can learn the
following lessons from the Texas blackout:
1.
There is a need for bigger
interconnections with its neighbors so that it can lean on other regions in
times of need and vice versa.
2.
There is also a need to elicit
more flexibility from the demand side.
3.
The grids built to meet
seasonal peaks should be prepared for extreme weather during the entire year,
not just for a while.
Alberta Should Fear Blackouts During
Heat
Some experts also opine that heat is more
likely to cause blackouts in Alberta than a blizzard. Many power plants shut
down for maintenance in summer, and hot weather can also reduce output on
natural gas facilities.
To know more about electricity in Alberta,
click here.
Sources:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/texas-power-outages-alberta-1.5917052
https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/extreme-weather-crippled-energy-rich-texas-could-it-happen-in-alberta-1.5314756
https://calgarysun.com/opinion/columnists/guest-opinion-texas-provides-cautionary-tale-for-alberta-and-the-planet