Texas energy companies are given wide latitude in their planning for catastrophic events. With no mandate, there is little incentive to invest in precautions for events, such as a Southern snowstorm, that are rare. For ERCOT operators, the storm’s arrival was swift and fierce, but they had anticipated it and knew it would strain their system. Power plants began falling offline in rapid succession as they were overcome by the frigid weather or ran out of fuel to burn. Within hours, 40 percent of the power supply had been lost.

Source: New York Times February 21, 2021 10:01 UTC