Dive Brief:

• The Electric Reliability Council of Texas is in the midst of a five-month exercise to overhaul its forecasting methodology that stakeholders hope will clarify how much new generation the state will need to provide electricity to its rapidly growing population.
• “It’s possible the economy is becoming more efficient in using electricity,” said Warren Lasher,ERCOT's director of system planning. “The building [efficiency] standards are getting stronger, wholesale price caps are increasing … lots of things are happening that are likely to reduce power load going forward.” 

 Dive Insight:

A better idea of exactly how much power Texas is going to have will help regulators decide whether to restructure the electricity market, which has been the subject of an ongoing debate as load increases but no new power plants are being built. Generators say a subsidy is needed as an incentive to new capacity.