Notice that Peter Crampton, while I am sure a nice, intelligent man (in Germany),
is absolutely just an academic type, not someone connected in any real way to the people in/from/of Texas running/working on the electric grid/market.
Here is one paper for example (he's the vice chair of ERCOT).
This is a problem, when we have elitist disconnected types making big, long term decisions, based on what amounts to academic thoughts, not discussions with folks on the ground. If you read his other papers/thoughts/topics, clearly he is all-in on climate change and 'green energy.'
This is not a board that is responsive, or inclusive of dissenting opinions on this; further, his conclusions about '50 percent or more on wind energy' are just...wrong. He has had a leadership role at ERCOT, yet the market parameters such as ancillary service requirements...were not adjusted well, and it clearly wasn't fixed since 2011 to account for 'rare' cold weather events. At the very least his resignation should be demanded by all, as well as the chairwoman, and a restructuring of ERCOT leadership is well past due.
Quote:
But will the market provide the investment incentives for battery storage and improved demand response as the share of renewable resources grows? I believe the answer is yes. With insufficient flexible resources, energy prices will become highly volatile, especially in real time. Flexible batteries, demand response, and gas peakers are well positioned to profit from this volatility, buying when prices are low and selling when prices are high. Scarcity pricinghigh pricing during times of scarcityis essential in strengthening this investment signal.
Today's best-practice market designs likely can support high levels of renewables. Markets in Texas and Europe have run reliably with more than 50 per cent of energy coming from wind. What is required as renewable penetration increases is the routine adjustment of market parameters such as the ancillary services requirements, as well as the steady improvement in the market design to make the system more responsive and flexible. Planning plays a critical role as well in identifying problems early.
One issue that frustrates market success, especially with respect to long-run investment, is an incoherent and unstable climate policy.