A Free-Market Energy Blog

Texas’s Wounded Grid (yes, it’s windpower again)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- July 12, 2022

“While solar power is generally reaching near-full generation capacity, wind generation is currently generating significantly less than what it historically generated in this time period. Current projections show wind generation coming in less than 10 percent of its capacity.” (ERCOT, below)

“The saga is not over but will likely get worse. Wind and solar are still being added to the grid, and the politicians and regulators will have to resort to more and more intervention to keep the lights on over time.” (RLB, below)

The Sunday announcement was for yesterday: a conservation alert between 2 pm and 8 pm because of disappearing wind power:

ERCOT Issues Conservation Appeal to Texans and Texas Businesses

Appeal Effective Monday, July 11, 2022

With extreme hot weather driving record power demand across Texas, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) is issuing a Conservation Appeal, asking Texans and Texas businesses to voluntarily conserve electricity, Monday, July 11 between 2-8 p.m.…

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Andrew Dessler Cancels Economists from the Climate Debate

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- July 11, 2022

“In order to solve the climate problem, the first thing we need to do is ignore the economists.” – Andrew Dessler, May 14, 2022

“If you’re pushing fossil fuels at this point, you’re anti-human.” – Dessler, June 28, 2022

Andrew Dessler is the alarmist’s alarmist, joining Michael Mann and others who have declared war not only against fossil fuels but also against anyone who thinks otherwise. The two bring to mind the infamous Joe Romm, who carried the ugly torch back in his heyday.

Dessler is angry. His message of doom-and-gloom is not convincing many outside of the Church of Climate. And his emotions and disrespect work against his (hyped) activism. Consider his sarcastic paraphrase of the IPCC Summary for Policymakers:

Hey assholes. We’ve been telling you for decades that this was going to happen if we didn’t reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

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West Virgina v. EPA: Enthroning or Dethroning a Regulatory Czar?

By Richard W. Fulmer -- July 8, 2022

“The Supreme Court’s common sense decision states that federal regulatory agencies cannot bypass Congress and unilaterally impose unprecedented and economically and politically significant mandates. Nor can they ignore their own legislatively-approved mandates, stretching them far beyond what was intended. Finally, they cannot extend their reach outside their own expertise.”

Writing in The New Republic, Simon Lazarus, retired Senior Counsel for the Constitutional Accountability Center, charges that the Supreme Court has appointed itself to be America’s regulatory czar, declaring:

The high court cast aside the peoples’ elected representatives to enact the climate denial agenda of the mega-donors who funded their nominations.

Lazarus rests his case on claims that the Court:

  1. Had no right to take the case
  2. Ignored the clear text of the law – specifically Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act
  3.  Ignored the interests and stated desires of American utility companies

In making his argument, Lazarus adopted the now-familiar debate tactic of accusing the opposing side of doing exactly what he and his side are doing, namely creating regulatory czars and, in the process, bypassing the country’s elected representatives.…

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The Department of Energy’s Intent to Eliminate Non-condensing Furnaces

By -- July 7, 2022
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Letter to U.S. Department of Energy from AFPM, API

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- July 6, 2022
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Energy and Environmental Review: July 5, 2022

By -- July 5, 2022
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Happy 4th Weekend: Driving, Grilling, Fireworks

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- July 1, 2022
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Mountain Valley Pipeline: 94 Percent Complete, FERC 6 Percent Incomplete

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- June 30, 2022
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On Free Market Energy Advocacy

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- June 29, 2022
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CO2: Negating Ozone for Plant Productivity

By -- June 28, 2022
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