Subscriber Chat for Senate Hearing Today

Senate Business & Commerce Committee interim charges on load growth and innovative generation technologies are up today. Join me anytime between 9-11CT to track and discuss.

I’ll be live from 9:00 -11: 00 for an Ask Me Anything and to share information and thoughts about the Senate hearing today with paid subscribers here. If you’re not already a subscriber, you can upgrade by pressing the button below; you will be able to join the discussion and also get access to subscriber-only content including Grid Roundups and the full archive of articles and podcasts.

Here are the witnesses they’re expecting to hear from on innovative technologies (the links are to podcasts I’ve recorded with those witnesses, also see this one on geothermal and this one on hydrogen):

• Jimmy Glotfelty, Commissioner, Public Utility Commission of Texas

• Barry Smitherman, President and Chairman, Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance

• Mark Stover, Executive Director, Texas Solar Power Association

• Brian Weeks, Senior Director for Hydrogen Business Development, GTI Energy, Texas Hydrogen Alliance

(Note: Commissioner Glotfelty chairs the Texas Advanced Nuclear Reactor Working Group and testified last week to the House Appropriations Committee.)

And on load growth, which I wrote about here, the witness list is as follows:

• Mark Bell, President and Chief Executive Officer, Association of Electric Companies of Texas

• Todd Staples, President, Texas Oil and Gas Association

• Haynes Strader, Chief Development Officer, Skybox Datacenters

• Pablo Vegas, President and Chief Executive Officer, Electric Reliability Council of Texas

• Jimmy Glotfelty, Commissioner, Public Utility Commission of Texas

• John Padalino, Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel, Bandera Electric Cooperative

• Woody Rickerson, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Electric Reliability Council of Texas

• Allan Schurr, Chief Commercial Officer, Enchanted Rock

Below are the interim charges; note there is also one about insurance which is skyrocketing and fast becoming a full blown economic crisis in Texas and beyond. Of course, increasingly extreme weather driven by emissions from fossil fuels is a major driver of skyrocketing insurance rates.

Managing Texas Sized Growth: Evaluate the state's ability to keep pace with increasing electricity demand related to population growth and energy intensive technologies such as electric vehicles and data centers. Recommend ways to increase reliability via demand-side response programs. Study ERCOT's forecasting methodology and recommend ways to increase transparency. Monitor ongoing efforts at the Public Utility Commission related to energy efficiency programs and distributed energy resources, including the implementation of Senate Bill 1699, 88th Legislature.

Innovative Power Generation: Explore emerging technologies with the potential to add new dispatchable power to our electric grid including, but not limited, to small modular nuclear reactors, advanced batteries, and new developments in hydrogen and geothermal resources. Identify and recommend regulatory and policy actions required to deploy emerging technologies within the state's electric grid.

Addressing the Rising Cost of Insurance: Assess the impact of rising property and casualty insurance costs on Texas property owners, real estate lenders, and commercial and industrial development. Identify ways to increase consumer transparency to better inform coverage decisions and make recommendations to ensure a competitive and affordable insurance market for consumers.

I’ll see you at 9:00 at this link.

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