February 27, 2019
BE ADVISED:
Summer 2019 is fast approaching and could bring with it another year of record-setting demand for electricity across Texas. Because natural gas-fueled electric generation accounts for more than 50- percent of power generation in Texas, the Railroad Commission (RRC), the Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) are taking steps to make sure the state’s electric and natural gas industries work together to meet demand for electricity.
As part of this preparation, ERCOT’s Gas-Electric Working Group discussed guidelines at its February 15, 2019 meeting to ensure necessary coordination of natural gas availability and delivery to electric generation facilities to prevent disruptions. To ensure the highest level of coordination, electric utilities (transmission and/or distribution service providers, or TDSPs) are getting information on key electricity-consuming pipeline facilities that provide natural gas to generation facilities. The TDSPs can take steps to keep electricity flowing to those facilities.
Information on the Gas-Electric Working Group can be found on ERCOT’s website, http://www.ercot.com/committee/gewg. Any operator of gas-fueled generation or a pipeline serving gas-fueled generation that has not already obtained and reviewed this information should do so immediately to ensure proper coordination.
The working group will provide an ongoing forum for the natural gas and electric industries to coordinate. All operators of gas-fueled generation, operators of pipelines serving gas-fueled generation, and TDSPs serving natural gas pipeline facilities should participate in the working group on an ongoing basis. The listserv for the working group can be found on ERCOT’s website, http://lists.ercot.com/scripts/wa-ERCOT.exe?INDEX.
Please contact our offices, Kari French, Director of the Oversight and Safety Division at the Railroad Commission; Therese Harris, Director of Infrastructure Analysis at the Public Utility Commission, or Chad Thompson, Senior Manager, Operations Support & Engineering at ERCOT, with any questions.
