Gaps in natural gas regulation could leave the state vulnerable to another winter storm related blackout.
After its natural gas supply dropped sharply during Winter Storm Uri , the Midlothian Power Plant, pictured here, had to reduce electricity generation. State oil and gas inspectors are not adequately verifying that Texas natural gas production and delivery systems are prepared to keep running in severe winter storms.
Regulators have also failed to hold natural gas operators to winter weatherization standards, according to a The state mandate requiring natural gas production and distribution companies to prepare for extreme winter weather goes back to the 2021 blackouts during Winter Storm Uri. Those blackouts are largely remembered as a failure of the Texas electric grid. But the days-long power outage was also caused by freeze-related breakdowns along Texas’s vast natural gas supply chain. Those problems stopped gas from reaching power plants, contributing to the electricity crunch.from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission found that more than 30% of power plant failures during the storm were due to interruptions in fuel supply, almost all of it natural gas. After the blackouts, the state legislature passed Senate Bill 3. Among other things, the law requires the Railroad Commission to identify the parts of the gas supply chain that are critical to the operation of the Texas power grid, and ensure those parts are ready to run during severe winter weather. The Railroad Commission, the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency, began on-site inspections of natural gas wells, pipelines and storage facilities to gauge their winter preparedness in December 2022.According to the auditor’s report, current rules allow gas companies to decide for themselves what constitutes sufficient winter preparedness for their own operations. Every company that did anything to prepare for winter weather appears to have passed inspection. Of the 8,732 inspections the Railroad Commission conducted during the 2024 and 2025 winter seasons, regulators issued only two violations. Both of those were because the facilities inspected “had no weatherization methods in place,” according to the audit. “The Commission stated that it relies on facility operators to determine which weatherization measures are needed and whether those measures are sufficient for that facility,” auditors found. “It did not compare facilities’ actual weatherization methods to the Commission’s best practices.” When facilities passed inspection, the Commission did not follow up with suggestions for improvement. “The commission did not identify and communicate to facilities any weaknesses in weatherization in the other 8,730 inspections ,” reported auditors.Staff at critical gas facilities are required to attend weather preparedness training to be ready in the event of severe storms. The audit found that inspectors are not required to verify that trainings actually took place and, instead, take the gas companies’ word for it. “Not verifying training records increases the risk that some staff will not be prepared for severe winter weather events,” concluded state auditors. Auditors said some of these shortcomings should be addressed with a “high” level of urgency because “prompt action is essential to address the noted concerns and reduce risk.”Critics of the Railroad Commission said the audit’s findings fit a larger pattern of lax oversight of the oil and gas industry. "You could have operators doing the cheapest thing possible on site , and the cheapest thing possible might not be the most effective thing,” Virginia Palacios executive director of the watchdog group Commission Shift said about the current weatherization system.In a written response to the audit submitted by Railroad Commission Executive Director Wei Wang, the Commission disagreed with some of the audit's findings. For one, the Commission contends that holding gas operators to industry best practices for weatherization is “unworkable” given the variety of locations inspectors need to visit. During a site visit, “commission inspectors use their industry knowledge and extensive training to render a professional judgement,” the commission said. The commission also bristled at the implication that the small number of violations detected by inspectors suggests a broken system of regulation. “The low number of violations issued reflected the successful implementation of 3, not a failure of oversight,” wrote Commission management. In regard to some of the other audit recommendations, the Commission agreed it should begin supplying companies with inspection records as a matter of practice, but said it would not try to verify whether staff had attended safety training unless it suspected company representatives of lying about it.Mose Buchele focuses on energy and environmental reporting at KUT. Got a tip? Email him at mbuchele@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @mosebuchele.The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission released some findings on Thursday from an investigation into February's deadly winter storm and blackouts. Regulators faulted Texas energy policy for much of the disaster.Provisions within Senate Bill 3 touch on everything from regulating some retail electricity plans to establishing an energy emergency alert system. But the most contentious proposals deal with which parts of the state’s power infrastructure will need to “winterize.”In the 1930s, regulating industries was seen as essential to prevent another Great Depression. Later as America soured on regulation, Texas energy execs saw themselves as part of the solution.It's been reported that last week's rolling blackouts that left parts of the state in the dark for 15 minutes or more--in some cases, a lot more)--made…Update: Austin Energy has released an updated version of this map. You can find it and an explanation here.Earlier: Texas is currently in Energy Emergency…Several groups are investigating manipulation of the electric and natural gas markets during the Texas blackout. But the rules are different for different kinds of energy.Thousands of Austin properties sit in areas prone to flooding. Here's how to find out if you're in one.Austin is currently in the middle of a major overhaul of its floodplain maps. New rainfall data shows flood risk is greater than previously thought.A new report finds burying lines would be expensive and infeasible given Austin's rocky topsoil. The city commissioned the study after frozen tree limbs on power lines caused blackouts in 2023.The company CirclesX says it can prove widespread natural gas market manipulation. So far, its case has gained no traction in court.From hurricane season to ice storms, severe weather alerts in Texas might change after scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service were fired.Experts were skeptical of a report from the Texas grid operator showing the state could run short of power by 2026.More Texas homebuilders are including blackout protection to brace for potential outages A home builder and an electricity retailer are partnering to install backup power batteries in new homes as Texans brace for potential outages this winter.
Audit Blackouts Natural Gas Railroad Commission Of Texas Texas Blackouts Texas Energy Texas Energy Grid Texas Natural Gas Winter Storm Uri
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