Texas electrical grid operator avoids 'emergency conditions,' says call to conserve energy is over
ERCOT oversees the flow of electricity for more than 26M Texas customers
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The Texas electrical grid operator, which has been under fire after one of the worst outages in U.S. history, avoided entering "emergency conditions" Tuesday after pleading for customers to conserve energy.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) tweeted a warning Tuesday saying "consumers and businesses are urged to reduce their electricity use this afternoon and into the evening."
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The warning, though, was temporary. The grid operator followed up with another tweet four hours later saying that the "energy conservation appeal has ended."
The notice came after the embattled power grid operator tweeted that the grid was at risk for entering "emergency conditions" due to "high gen outages typical in April & higher-than-forecasted demand caused by a stalled cold front over" Texas.
Power lines in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
The grid operator didn't expect outages but said that declaring an emergency would give them the opportunity to "access additional resources."
ERCOT oversees the flow of electricity for more than 26 million Texas customers, which is about 90% of the state's electric load.
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ERCOT is already being investigated by the House Oversight Committee after deadly blackouts in February that left millions of people without electricity and heat for days in subfreezing temperatures for nearly a week.
When pipes burst and water systems shut down, Texans were also told to boil water for drinking — if they still had a way to boil water.
The blackouts began Feb. 15 when a winter storm plunged temperatures into single digits across Texas, causing skyrocketing demand for electricity to heat homes. Grid operators unplugged more than 4 million customers as the system buckled, which its outgoing CEO Bill Magness had said was necessary to avert an even more catastrophic blackout that could have lasted months.
Representatives for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.