Lubbock Times

Wind power accounted for approximately 18% of all electricity production in Texas in 2019, a significant increase over the 6% accounted for in 2010.

While wind-powered generation produced 84.4 thousand gigawatt-hours (GWh) in 2019, an 11% increase over 2018, the industry also saw a capacity growth that outstripped the actual increase in contribution, with a 17% increase to wind generation capacity, a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration found.

Michael Giberson, an associate professor of practice at Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, recently spoke with the Lubbock Times about the rapid growth of wind energy production in the state.

With plenty of wide-open spaces, Texas can be inviting to wind energy production, but the state also has a very supportive policy environment, Giberson told the Lubbock Times.

"Some of that's federal, some of that's [is] state and local- or county-level support," Giberson told the Lubbock Times. 

Additionally, Texas' long-standing relationship with the energy industry and understanding of energy development prepared the state as early adopters for the new technology. 

"The combination of landowners that are willing to have the developments, and the ability to seel the power into the market – it's just been a good environment for wind energy to develop," Giberson told the Lubbock Times.

While some have criticized the incentivization of wind energy development as harming the state's electrical grid's reliability due to discouraging investment in non-renewable-powered plants that supply dependable power, Giberson said he sees the situation as presenting challenges to be dealt with.

"But, they're being dealt with," he told the Lubbock Times. "The bulk of the Texas electric power grid is managed by the Ercot power system. They've done a fine job. They've been able to manage."

The state has yet to have any blackouts due to variation in wind energy production, and the state's natural gas-based generation capacity handles the requirements for filling in when wind energy isn't present, Giberson told the Lubbock Times.

Yet, the growth of wind energy, with the ability to undercut competition at high-production times, does come at the expense of the profitability of other forms of generation, he said.

Additionally, while subsidies do encourage wind-based generation development, Giberson told the Lubbock Times that Texas has good enough conditions for wind energy that sites would still be developed if subsidies did not exist.

"People do worry about the reliability issues," Giberson told the Lubbock Times. "It's true that it's a challenge for system operators – it's something they have to pay attention to."

Yet, while it may mean that some days are more stressful for the producers, the impact on the typical customer isn't going to be noticeable, he said.