The U.S. Department of Energy approved $360 million for powerlines linking Texas’ grid to Mississippi. According to a release last week, the effort is part of the Biden-Harris administration’s Investing in America agenda.
Thomas Gleeson, chairman of the Texas Public Utility Commission, noted that, while the Southern Spirit Transmission line would cross multiple state lines, Texas’ grid independence would not be upset.
However, while the lines are exempt from federal oversight, the maneuver is the latest in a long line of federal overtures to integrate Texas into the national grid. Historically, Texas has shunned interconnection because it would subject its grid to unwanted federal oversight.
Texas’s grid, unique for its independence, helps the state avoid the federal regulatory authority exercised by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and most of the state’s energy policy stakeholders remain committed to preserving this autonomy.
As recently as February of this year, leadership at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which operates Texas’ grid, has repeatedly resisted efforts to integrate with the national grid, citing the importance of energy sovereignty.
Still, the bi-directional powerlines will be the first interconnection to Texas’ grid constructed in decades.
Explored in Season 8 of Exposed, Lights Out, the notion that connecting to the national grid will strengthen Texas isn’t based on reality. In fact, according to energy experts, there are several reasons why remaining independent is safer when it comes to severe weather events and grid resilience.
Democrats, including thrice-failed candidate Beto O’Rourke and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, routinely support calls for Texas to lose its grid independence and federalize.
The announcement of funding comes less than a month before the November election.
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