Harlingen, Texas (KVEO)—On Monday, Governor Greg Abbott declared he is making reform of the ERCOT, an emergency item for this legislative session.
State allows ERCOT to ‘modify pricing’ as electricity demands increase
In declaring this item an emergency, the Governor is calling on the legislature to investigate ERCOT.
“The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has been anything but reliable over the past 48 hours,” said Governor Abbott.
“Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather. This is unacceptable. Reviewing the preparations and decisions by ERCOT is an emergency item so we can get a full picture of what caused this problem and find long-term solutions.” said the Governor in a written statement. “I thank my partners in the House and Senate for acting quickly on this challenge, and I will work with them to enhance Texas’ electric grid and ensure that our state never experiences power outages like this again.”
UPDATES: Power Outages continue across the Rio Grande Valley, possibly into Wednesday
As of Tuesday morning, over four million Texans are without power after planned rolling blackouts turned into prolonged outages and are still not back online.
Since then, customers have wondered why some areas have maintained power, while others have been in the dark and cold for days.
Amid ongoing widespread power outages during historic winter weather, ERCOT is facing criticism as millions of demand answers.
