What Texas Tells Us About Lessening the Frequency and Severity of Electricity Blackouts?

  • Focus Area -
  • Type Instant Insight
  • Date 28 February 2021
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Abstract

On Monday, February 12, approximately three million homes and businesses in Texas lost power due to an unusual winter storm that simultaneously increased electricity demand and decreased supply. This was not the first time; Texas had a similar incident due to cold weather in 2011.

Severe weather is a frequent cause of large-scale blackouts. For instance, in 2012, the Northeastern region of the United States suffered extensive power outages due to Hurricane Sandy. The hurricane toppled many distribution lines, resulting in several million residents not having electricity for up to two weeks.

 

 

 

 

Authors

Frank Felder

Frank Felder

Visiting Researcher Frank is an engineer, energy policy analyst, and a visiting researcher at KAPSARC. Prior to joining KAPSARC, Frank was a… Frank is an engineer, energy policy analyst, and a visiting researcher at KAPSARC. Prior to joining KAPSARC, Frank was a Research Professor at the School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, Director of the Rutgers Energy Institute, and Director of the Center for Energy, Economics and Environmental Policy. In those roles, he conducted original and applied research in the areas of electric power system modeling, clean energy policies, and climate change for academic foundations, government agencies, and energy utilities. He has also worked as an economic consultant and nuclear engineer.

Expertise

  • Energy Policy
  • Electricity Restructuring and Energy Modeling

Publications See all Frank Felder’s publications

Hatem Al Atawi

Hatem Al Atawi

Hatem is senior research analyst at KAPSARC. He holds a master’s degree in power system economics, with a focus on… Hatem is senior research analyst at KAPSARC. He holds a master’s degree in power system economics, with a focus on electricity markets, from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Idaho. Before joining KAPSARC, Hatem worked within various industries. He interned at ABB Västerås in Sweden, where he worked on electric vehicle asset management under the Swedish transport administration's electric road systems project. Hatem also worked at Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories in Washington state, where he modeled speed governors and prime movers for hydro and gas turbines.

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