Heat raises prices; solar and storage lowers them

Texas’ summer of 2023 was memorably excruciating. It was the second hottest summer in Texas history, behind only the inferno that was 2011. Over 61 days last year, Texans endured statewide highs of 105 degrees.

Unsurprisingly, the state’s power reserves were strained. On average, outages of “dispatchable” thermal power plants — those running on gas, coal, or nuclear — were 70% higher than ERCOT expected. On seven days in 2023, thermal power plants exceeded what ERCOT calls “extreme” outage levels.

Texans know too well that gas and coal plants are not always dispatchable as they pretend to be. Their rate of unavailability skyrockets when they’re needed most: during extreme heat and cold…