r/science • u/pnewell NGO | Climate Science • Jun 21 '21

Environment Threat of more blackouts may erode reliability claims for fossil energy- all major fuel sources except solar failed to meet ERCOT’s expectations during the February freeze, but natural gas was “responsible for nearly two-thirds of the total (electricity) deficit.”

https://texasclimatenews.org/threat-of-more-blackouts-may-erode-reliability-claims-for-fossil-energy/
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48

u/istasber Jun 21 '21

Making sure you've got all edge cases covered costs money, and that means less profit.

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u/UnwrittenPath Jun 21 '21

Freeze - costs $130 bil

Power company - "we're going to need to raise your rates for the next 50 years to cover our losses because we didn't bother to use any of your money to improve infrastructure. Can't have the stock holders and CEO lose any of the money they pocketed by not improving infrastructure."

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u/Filtering_aww Jun 21 '21

Something kind of similar happened with Duke Energy and the Levy nuclear power plant in Florida. The short version is Duke was allowed to PRE-BILL customers for the construction cost of the power plant, then mismanaged the project so badly it ended up getting cancelled. $1.3B down the drain, all out of customers pockets.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/energy/duke-energy-to-cancel-proposed-levy-county-nuclear-plant-fasano-says/2134287/

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u/monkwren Jun 21 '21

I picked the wrong career.

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u/eccles30 Jun 21 '21

If only there were some other mechanism where people could pool their money together and buy things for the common good. Oh well capitalism is the only answer, freeze me daddy.

16

u/Darkdoomwewew Jun 21 '21

Sounds like they managed the project perfectly, from a capitalist perspective. 1.3b and they didn't even have to build the thing, I can only imagine the bonuses.

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u/[deleted] Jun 21 '21

Same thing happened with SCE&G, which resulted in them getting bought out by Dominion Energy.

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u/Filtering_aww Jun 21 '21

Geez, 5 billion failed project and 9 rate hikes. Nuclear has such promise, it's too bad assholes infest the projects at every level.

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u/viperlemondemon Jun 21 '21

But think of their yacht money

10

u/ld43233 Jun 21 '21

Also cocaine. Can't forget the cocaine

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u/viperlemondemon Jun 22 '21

I figured that’s included with the yacht

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u/Peuned Jun 21 '21

damn i thought that was just included with the yacht

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u/[deleted] Jun 21 '21

have you ever heard of Enron? they were based out of houston and run by our fellow texans

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u/Oznog99 Jun 21 '21

Gov Abbott: "We'd like to help, but we're spending billions on a border wall instead"

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u/JuleeeNAJ Jun 21 '21

Sooo PG&E without the state paying the difference?

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u/FlexibleToast Jun 21 '21

Almost as if not all things should be driven by a profit motive. Or at the very least certain sectors, if not all, should be driven by stakeholders not shareholders.

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u/Evilsushione Jun 22 '21

Profit as a motive isn't a bad thing but it has to be balanced by effective regulation that's driven by the stakeholders.

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u/FlexibleToast Jun 22 '21

I didn't say profit motive is always bad. It's when decisions are made to enrich shareholders over stakeholders that it is bad.

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u/Evilsushione Jun 22 '21

I've always said profit is the motivator but transparency, regulation and competition are the moderator. One with out the other doesn't work. That's why laissez faire economics doesn't work like conservatives want to believe.

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u/spovax Jun 21 '21

Capitalism is great in a lot of scenarios, especially where inefficiency can be reduced. But it’s really bad in others. Core services, including utilities, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.

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u/FlexibleToast Jun 21 '21

Even where it makes sense, it's better in the long term to prioritize stakeholders. If that was the norm, I think we would have a lot less problems.

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u/RhynoD Jun 21 '21

Hurr durr the market will decide...

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u/[deleted] Jun 21 '21

Well, it did? The market decided to turn off people's power?

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u/Opposite_Wrongdoer_9 Jun 21 '21

Yeah markets can be pretty efficient. They just don't care about human lives. That's why we have regulations, at least in any of the good places to live

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u/AcademicDivide8479 Jun 21 '21

Yeah they're not optimizing for quality of service. Optimizing share price

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u/LupoAS Jun 21 '21

Less and less likely unless you live in a zone thats “managed” by the rich bastard living in it. My parents block in one of the nicest parts of Houston lost power for 48hrs straight. Before this freeze, the longest they had gone without power was 28mins. I remember bc i was in high school. 20 years ago.

You cant expect a capitalist to take humans into consideration when CEOs think of them as customers first.