As usual, there is a tremendous amount of misinformation about the rolling blackouts of the past week and the failure of wind sources during periods of bad weather. First, it is factual that wind turbines do not always generate energy. Turbines need some wind, but not too much. The problem with electricity delivery in the central and southern US last week, however, had little to do with energy sources. Oil and gas refineries in South Texas had to close due to severe winter weather conditions. It is obviously wrong to attribute the problem to “frozen wind turbines” as some have done.
There was an energy supply crisis last week because the energy infrastructure in the south was poorly prepared for such cold weather. Taking into account the 2020 economic downturn, we are using more electricity in the US today than ever before, despite the increasing use of energy-efficient technologies. We need more different energy sources, not less.
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