UNPACKING HOUSTON’S ELECTRICITY OUTAGES – PART I

By Bill King Th e Houston area has been subjected to two widespread power outages this year. Many in our region went two weeks or longer before power was restored. The outages have sparked widespread public outrage and castigation of the power companies, primarily CenterPoint, by the media and politicians. However, there has been generally more heat than light as far as understanding Houston’s vulnerable grid and how to improve it. We are faced with a multi-faceted, complex problem. Th ere are no easy answers, no silver bullets. But that does not mean that we cannot improve the situation or that we should settle for the current dysfunction. To do so is costly, risks the health of some of our fellow Houstonians and is causing serious brand damage to Houston. Deconflating Generation and Distribution Issues There are two distinct problems that cause the loss of power in our region. Th e most common is damage to the distribution system, generally caused by some kind of weather event. Occasionally, part of the electric distribution is taken down by flood waters but much more frequently the outages are caused by wind damage to overhead power lines. Less common are events when the...