NewsNational

Actions

Texas blackouts fuel false claims about renewable energy

Winter Weather Texas Power Failures power lines
Posted at 9:17 AM, Feb 17, 2021
and last updated 2021-02-17 12:17:13-05

(AP) — Conservative commentators on Tuesday have falsely claimed that wind turbines and solar energy were primarily to blame for power outages across Texas as the power grid buckled.

A variety of misleading claims spread on social media, with the Green New Deal and wind turbines getting much of the attention. But the Texas state power agency said that gas, coal and nuclear plants actually caused nearly twice as many outages as wind and solar power.

On top of that, ERCOT data shows that while Texas has ramped up wind energy in recent years, the state still only relies on wind power for about 25% of its total electricity.