Houston storm reveals downsides of forced electrification

We live in a world where more and more devices require charging. Nothing shows the downsides better than the recent storm that hit Houston, where thousands of residents are still without power.

Houstonians who own electric stoves can’t cook, those with electric water heaters lack hot water, and those with electric cars can’t charge them.

The range of an electric vehicle without electricity is zero.

But the Environmental Protection Agency and President Joe Biden’s Department of Transportation require that, by 2032, 70% of new cars and 25% of new trucks sold be electric.

Imagine the state Houston would be in if the number of electric vehicles on the road today met these standards.

Biden’s Energy Department issued final regulations that most stoves sold must be electric by 2028 and most water heaters must be electric by 2029.

If these rules were fully implemented gradually, Houstonians would be worse off today. Not only are these appliances more expensive, but they don’t operate without electricity, unlike natural gas stoves and water heaters.

The latest report from the Institute of Energy Research, released earlier this month, shows that the United States has 4 quadrillion cubic feet of natural gas, enough to last 130 years; 1.7 trillion barrels of oil, more than five times Saudi Arabia’s reserves, enough for 227 years; and 470 billion short tons of coal, enough for 485 years, or 50% more than Russia.

All of these elements are recoverable with current technology. And as technology advances, America’s resources will increase.

Although America has centuries-old reserves, the Biden administration wants to use wind turbines and solar panels to generate electricity. Electricity generated from wind and solar power is intermittent and less resilient and reliable than continuous power from nuclear power, coal and natural gas.

Wind farms require backup natural gas power plants to start when the wind stops blowing. And solar panels require battery storage when the sun isn’t shining.

The Houston crisis dramatically illustrates that not only will forced electrification lead to higher energy prices, but it will also reduce economic resilience. The gas pipelines are buried underground, but the cables and electricity transmission pylons are in the open air. This is why major storms cause power outages, but not natural gas outages.

The Biden administration’s goal is forced electrification through wind and solar to reduce global temperatures. But even if America stopped using fossil fuels, starting today, it would only make a difference of 0.2 degrees Celsius by 2100, according to government models.

The costs of integrating renewable energy into the U.S. power grid underestimate the resilience needed for renewable infrastructure against storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. The resilience analysis does not fully take into account the considerable costs of strengthening and repairing vulnerable wind turbines and solar panels.

The Houston crisis is further evidence that sensible energy policy would reform America’s transportation and distribution systems, including burying power lines. Renewable energy puts strain on the existing transmission system, leading to power outages, as is becoming increasingly common in California. Environmental regulations regarding siting limit the construction of new transmission lines.

Biden’s transition to renewable energy would require a fundamental reengineering of the U.S. power grid. High levels of distributed solar power would require replacement of existing transmission and distribution equipment with expensive grid-forming inverters and controllable capacitors. The costs of this massive deployment are not fully taken into account.

Low-income households are disproportionately vulnerable to power outages. Their power is taking longer to be restored, and they can’t buy standalone generators that allowed some Houstonians to conserve electricity during the disruption.

Through multiple regulations, the Biden administration is trying to impose electrification on Americans and end the use of fossil fuels. But electric vehicles, electric water heaters and electric stoves do not work during power outages.

Today, Houstonians, like all Americans, need a resilient power grid that will continue to provide power during storms.

This commentary, distributed by Tribune News Service, was originally published by ArcaMax