The Electric Reliability Council of Texas on Oct. 2 issued a request for proposals to stakeholders to increase operating reserves, with the grid operator looking to add up to an additional 3,000 megawatts for the winter 2023-2024 peak load season.
“Our request to procure capacity in advance of winter is part of our continued commitment to maintain grid reliability and resiliency,” said ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas. “ERCOT is not projecting energy emergency conditions this winter season, but we want to be prepared and ensure all available tools are readily available if needed.”
The capacity request was informed by several factors, including significant peak Load growth since last winter, recent and proposed retirements of dispatchable Generation Resources, and recent extreme winter weather events.
ERCOT’s Monthly Outlook for Resource Adequacy report determined that if conditions in the winter 2023-2024 season during the peak demand hour (which is in the morning during winter) were comparable to peak demand conditions last winter, which occurred during Winter Storm Elliott in December 2022, the probability level of entering into emergency conditions would be higher than ERCOT’s acceptable elevated-risk threshold.
The RFP seeks capacity from both dispatchable generation and demand response solutions to cover the period of December 1, 2023, through February 29, 2024.
More information can be found in ERCOT’s Market Notice.
