San Antonio Express-News: Hydropower eyes bigger energy role, less environmental harm
March 18 — In southwestern Pennsylvania, eight locks and dams that for decades helped barges move goods along the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers will in a few years also generate enough power for 75,000 homes.
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WFAA: Support grows for independent monitor of natural gas industry in Texas
March 20 — There is growing support in Austin for adding another layer of oversight to the state’s natural gas industry. And state Sen. Nathan Johnson says it would likely look a lot like the independent market monitor already in place for the electricity industry. The Democrat from Dallas says many folks, from lawmakers to the industry itself, were initially opposed to an electricity monitor, but they now realize it helps the market function better.
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Midland Reporter-Telegram: RRC Commissioner Says its Time to stand up for oil
March 19 — Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has placed a spotlight on just how uncertain the world’s energy supplies can be. Railroad Commission Chairman Wayne Christian offered a reminder of the role Texas oil and gas played in both World War I and World War II.
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Houston Business Journal: Advanced Power considers $184.5M solar, battery storage project in Texas
March 21 — The company is also developing a solar project in Fort Bend County that will add 140 megawatts of capacity to ERCOT’s Houston zone.
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The Texan: Influx of Renewable Generation Poses Hard Questions for Texas’ Power Grid and Energy Industry
March 21 — Wind and solar generators in Texas can break even selling electricity at negative prices thanks largely to federal subsidies and local tax breaks, which has spurred a bum-rush of wind turbines and solar farms into the state.
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Fortune: Texas has enough wind and solar power to phase out coal entirely. There’s just one huge catch
March 22 — The state’s energy grid is a mess, and it is standing in the way of a faster transition in Texas away from coal and toward renewables. “Transmission lines are the leading bottleneck that is slowing down the growth of wind and solar,” Daniel Cohan, one of the study’s coauthors, told Fortune.
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CBC: Once the epicenter of the oil patch, Texas now humming with wind and solar power
March 23 — One year after the fatal failure of the Texas electric grid sparked a backlash against clean power, the growth of its renewable energy sector hasn’t slowed down. Texas is already the top wind power producer in the United States and is on pace to become number 1 in solar electricity in a few years.
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San Antonio Express-News: As CPS Energy’s storm-related pricing lawsuits continue, it looks to lawmakers for protections
March 21 — With CPS Energy’s lawsuits challenging hundreds of millions of dollars in charges stemming from last year’s winter storm still in court, the utility is looking to lawmakers to prevent huge price jumps in the future. CPS officials say a bill filed last fall by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro could shield ratepayers from sky-high prices for natural gas in future weather emergencies.