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Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

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Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#51

Post by jcampbell1 »

martinald wrote: post #30
cameronh90 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Preface: I know very little about power grids, but had a couple thoughts. In the UK, there is a system of load shedding that is tied to the grid frequency. My understanding is that some industrial users agree terms where they get cheaper rates but if the demand outstrips supply, they are first to be cut. This load shedding is implemented by components that monitor the grid frequency, and if it drops below a fixed val…

No, not really. As far as I'm aware HVDC links are more efficient than AC links (even with AC/DC/AC conversion).

It looks like a tradeoff. The only place in the world doing a significant amount of long distance transmission is China. Their wind and coal resources are in the west, and demand is in the east, and transporting coal by rail just further increases air quality problems in the east. Based on what they are implementing, HVDC make sense at 800km+, and AC for shorter runs. I think it comes down to HVDC requires less conductor due to the AC skin effect, weighed against cost/loss for DC->AC.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra-high-voltage_electricity...

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#52

Post by every »

nimos wrote: post #20
pxeboot wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Source? I have personally seen one operating in Alaska during the winter.

Turbine manufactures have cold weather packages and deicing systems. I'd wager they don't get installed in Texas.

Quite likely because we rarely have heavy icing. This current storm is the worst since 1989. I've been in Austin for over 50 years and can count such incidents on one hand with fingers left to spare...

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#53

Post by o-__-o »

mdip wrote: post #48
Krisjohn wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I also have to wonder how an everyone-videoconference-from-home society changes electricity usage? Not saying it has a significant impact, just wondering. Well, anecdotally, my office is the only room that doesn't need heating.

Yup, year-round I have a window open in that room. It's 10 outside, today, but a balmy 77 in my office.

I powered on all of my servers tonight and opened the window. I’m probably part of the problem

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#54

Post by maxerickson »

ev1 wrote: post #45
slater wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$5k?!?!? How?!

$0.05 to $0.10/kWh seems like normal pricing. Average US house uses ~1100-1200 kWh (I don't actually know this, based on googling, assuming most places in Texas are standalone houses) per month. If prices are $3000-9000 per MW, then ~40 to 60 kWh/day (let's be generous, people are explicitly turning on heat for this extreme cold) for a week... Even $2/kWh (which was exceeded days ago) would demolish peoples' budgets.

I think most people are on fixed prices though. The supplier gets a big mark up over the wholesale cost and then is expected to have a plan to deal with situations like this.

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#56

Post by o-__-o »

bombcar wrote: post #49
throwawayboise wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not the temperature per se, it's icing. I read it here https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-14/deep-free... “When wind-turbine blades get covered with ice, they need to be shut down,” said Joshua Rhodes, a research associate at The University of Texas at Austin who focuses on energy.

A windmill is basically a inverse airplane - and airplane wings don’t like icing. I assume you could heat the blades but at some point you’re consuming more energy than you’re making.

Planes have deicing boots. Holes in the leading edge of the wing that has a balloon on the inside. A non freezing gel is usually pumped in which expands the balloon out of the hole and causes the ice to crack. It then retracts and this process repeats keeping the wing clear of ice.

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#57

Post by rstupek »

maxerickson wrote: post #54
ev1 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$0.05 to $0.10/kWh seems like normal pricing. Average US house uses ~1100-1200 kWh (I don't actually know this, based on googling, assuming most places in Texas are standalone houses) per month. If prices are $3000-9000 per MW, then ~40 to 60 kWh/day (let's be generous, people are explicitly turning on heat for this extreme cold) for a week... Even $2/kWh (which was exceeded days ago) would demolish peoples' budgets.

I think most people are on fixed prices though. The supplier gets a big mark up over the wholesale cost and then is expected to have a plan to deal with situations like this.

Griddy is a different provider which gives you grid prices for power

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#58

Post by blake1 »

ogre_codes wrote: post #33
tomrod wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They do, but they are planning on the common experience of extremes. Texas' weather is colder now than in the past 40 years.

> Texas' weather is colder now than in the past 40 years. Yes. Thus "Extreme" weather. I was going to suggest it is likely due to climate change, but that is largely conjecture.

There likely is a climate change effect. Polar vortexes have been making deeper incursions into North America because of increased turbulence in the atmosphere, driven by the overall energy level.

This about a pot, slowly boiling. As it gets hotter, it swirls more.

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#59

Post by MattGaiser »

mimikatz wrote: post #6

Texas is shockingly green when it comes to power. The windmills have frozen and it is the winter when there isn't as much sun. Most people are on a contract with fixed pricing, but some startups like Griddy are hurting people's wallets. We will likely see some retail electric company bankrupcies. Some of the electric providers are paying customers to move to someone else on Monday. The Joke is all the Californians wh…

Griddy is basically a variable price for power? I checked their website, but it wasn't completely clear on that point (maybe because I don't understand Texas electrical billing).

Re: Ercot nearly at capacity for Texas power grid

#60

Post by maxerickson »

rstupek wrote: post #57
maxerickson wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think most people are on fixed prices though. The supplier gets a big mark up over the wholesale cost and then is expected to have a plan to deal with situations like this.

Griddy is a different provider which gives you grid prices for power

Yeah, this is the answer to slater's question, that some people have signed up for exposure to wholesale prices.
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