Texas Power Prices Surge 6,000% as Grid Calls for Conservation
- Spot electricity prices got close to the $5,000 price cap
- Ercot is asking consumers to voluntary cut energy usage
A power station in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Photographer: Eddie Seal/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Texas spot electricity prices soared by more than 60-fold, climbing toward the $5,000 price cap as the state grid faces some of the tightest conditions for power supplies so far this summer.
Real-time prices on the grid jumped to about $4,750 a megawatt-hour Thursday at 3:45 p.m. local time, up from the grid average of $75 at the same time Wednesday, according to data from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or Ercot, as the grid operator is known.