Trusted Intelligence Texas Grid Failure and Implications for the Energy Transition

During the week of 14 February, a polar vortex weather event spread across the interior of the US, bringing with it freezing temperatures and causing havoc to gas production and power systems. No area was hit harder than Texas, where several consecutive days of below-freezing temperatures culminated in a historic power crisis. Just a month ago in Japan, a cold spell with record-breaking snowfall was accompanied by power prices spiking to 20 times normal levels. Now that the immediate crisis is behind us, it’s time to start looking forward and thinking about the lessons to be learned from these two events.