Natural gas plants have replaced coal to become the largest source of electricity for the US power grid, but they also appear to be the weakest link during extreme weather. The overreliance on natural gas could make the US vulnerable to power outages during extreme winter storms.
Gas plants accounted for more than half of all the grid鈥檚 power capacity that failed during five major winter storms between 2011 and 2022 鈥� events that regulators described as having 鈥渏eopardised grid reliability鈥� 鈥� according to a by the Union of Concerned 快猫短视频s, an advocacy group based in Massachusetts. Gas plants also failed at a disproportionately high rate compared with other sources of electricity.
鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty clear that gas plant operations are very vulnerable to extreme weather events and failed disproportionately during extreme winter storms in particular,鈥� says at the Union of Concerned 快猫短视频s.
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Arbaje and his colleague , also at the Union of Concerned 快猫短视频s, combed through reports from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a US agency that regulates the transmission and sale of electricity, and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), an international regulatory authority. They also consulted academic studies and grid operator documents.
In two of the winter storms 鈥� the 2011 Southwest Storm and 2018 South Central Storm 鈥� natural gas represented more than 70 per cent of available power that was lost. And in all five storms, the total gas plant capacity knocked offline was more than double that of the second most impacted electricity source, which was typically coal plants.
鈥淸This report] very much makes clear that this is a systematic problem in the gas industry and not a one-off thing under unusual circumstances,鈥� says at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group based in New York.
Since 2016, gas has replaced coal to become the main source meeting the base energy needs for the US, and is seen as a bridge fuel for the US transition to renewable electricity sources such as solar and wind power. But the failure rates of gas plants are a notable risk for US grid reliability 鈥� especially when natural gas provides 40 per cent of US electricity generation overall and often more in certain regions.
The most devastating impacts of electricity shortfalls largely resulting from gas plant failures fell upon Texas during Winter Storm Uri in 2021, when blackouts lasting more than 70 hours resulted in some homes going four days without electricity in freezing temperatures. The storm鈥檚 effects and hypothermia killed 246 people. 鈥淕rid reliability issues are ultimately public health issues,鈥� says Arbaje.
Gas plants require continuous deliveries of gas through pipelines, which can be disrupted when the wellheads or pipes themselves freeze. The gas supply chain is also dependent on electricity to operate, even as much of the US electrical grid is dependent on gas. Disruptions to either system can create a 鈥渄escending spiral鈥� that increasingly constrains both gas supply and electricity generation, says Rutigiliano.
Natural gas plants themselves can also experience equipment freezing and failures in wiring or rubber sealing materials. But the report highlighted how gas plant failures typically occurred 鈥渁t temperatures that were above the manufacturer鈥檚 [temperature] ratings鈥�, says Rutigliano. It is unclear why US gas plants suffer mechanical failures at such a high rate, he says.
Leaks of the greenhouse gas methane from natural gas plants also add to the problem by contributing to climate change. 鈥淲e need to end this vicious cycle of putting more carbon pollution from the fossil fuels into the atmosphere, driving extreme weather events that, in turn, are making the grid less reliable,鈥� says Arbaje.
