Experts in the News

Electricity grids and infrastructure must be better equipped for a changing climate or they can have deadly consequences. The crisis gripping Texas' power grid "illustrates the need for our energy systems to be more resilient to extreme weather," Baker Institute faculty scholar Daniel Cohan stated.

The state’s unique electrical system worked well for decades — but it wasn’t ready for unexpected cold, writes Center for Energy Studies nonresident scholar and energy historian Julie Cohn. 

“Power outages in Texas have nothing to do with power generation technology,” said energy fellow Jim Krane. “We wound up with a system designed for making a quick buck under optimal conditions. When something unusual happens, it’s a crisis.”

"In Texas, if you have one overarching thing that seems to be across the board, it's that nothing is winterized," said fellow Jim Krane of the state's power infrastructure. Technologies that protect against extreme cold work well in frigid areas, but "not one of those precautions has been instituted in Texas." 

Lax regulation exposed electricity producers — and their customers — to failures that brought down all four of Texas’ top generating types: natural gas, wind, coal and nuclear. Energy fellow Jim Krane co-authored a blog that looks at each to show what failed. Krane is the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies.