Part 1 outlined ERCOTās role in maintaining a stable grid.
- Letās take a closer look at what the grid actually is.
Why it matters: Knowing the different pieces of the Texas Electricity Market can help you understand where to turn for information during an outage.
šĀ It starts with power generation ā> hundreds of power plants in Texas produce more than twice the electricity of the next highest state in the U.S, Florida.
- Luminantās natural gas power plant in Forney or the Comanche Peak Nuclear Power plant in Somervell County are two examples.
šĀ The grid is then made up of transmission and distribution lines, substations and transformers.
- Transmission lines are the large high voltage steel towers you see in green belt areas.
- Distribution lines are lower voltage lines that deliver the electricity to your house.
šĀ Companies that own and operate these lines are called Transmission and Distribution Utilities (TDUs).
- Oncor is the largest TDU in North Texas.
- Utility co-ops like CoServ also operate throughout North Texas.
šĀ Your TDU owns and monitors your meter.
- They are the ones you call when your power goes out.
ā Ā For your Smart Homeowner list
- Make sure you know who your TDU is, so you know where to turn for information during an outage or in the event of a downed power line or transformer.
Best,
Travis