The Texas Power Grid in Danger of Collapsing During Solar Eclipse

We are just over three weeks away from a solar eclipse that will turn parts of Texas, and all of East Texas, dark for a few minutes in the middle of the day. Millions of people will travel to our area for the sole purpose of witnessing this event. It will be an awe-inspiring experience for sure. But this rare and exciting moment also comes with some caution. In particular, how the Texas power grid will hold up inside the Path of Totality over Texas.

Solar Power in Texas

Almost a third of the power generated by the Texas power grid comes from solar. The collection of solar power comes from a multitude of solar farms across the state. In East Texas, there are seven solar farms. East Texas will be ground zero for the eclipse on April 8 which means those solar farms will have a hard time collecting the sun's rays to provide power.

ERCOT

ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) has a plan in place to counteract the reduction in solar energy output. During the eclipse, the state's solar power generation will drop to about 7.6% of its normal output. With that drop, ERCOT will have to use other sources to keep the grid at normal capacity.

Luckily, weather should be cooperative during the event. For one, temperatures will not be high enough to cause excessive use of our air conditioning units which will greatly lower the demand from the grid. Extended forecasts do call for clear skies that day which will help in the collection of solar power before and after the eclipse.

Enjoy the Event

While our much maligned power grid will have to take action to avoid a complete collapse, it looks like there will be enough power for us locals and the millions of visitors to safely enjoy the total eclipse over Texas.

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