Two lifelines for America kitv.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kitv.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Even mighty Texas, the energy powerhouse of America, is feeling the wrath of Mother Nature.
A deep freeze this week in the Lone Star state, which relies on electricity to heat many homes, is causing power demand to skyrocket. At the same time, natural gas, coal, wind and nuclear facilities in Texas have been knocked offline by the unthinkably low temperatures.
This situation could have wide-reaching implications as the US power industry attempts to slash carbon emissions in response to the climate crisis.
That nightmarish supply-demand situation has sent electricity prices in energy-rich Texas to skyrocket more than 10,000% compared with before the unprecedented temperatures hit. Texas has been hit with life-threatening blackouts. More than 4 million people in the state were without power early Tuesday.
Texas produces more power than any other state: Here s why it went dark anyway kvia.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kvia.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
<figcaption> Brackish water flows from an unplugged abandoned well outside of Imperial in Pecos County. Texas reported more than 6,000 documented "orphan" oil wells in 2019, almost all on private land, but some experts believe that's an underestimate. <cite>Credit: Rafael Aguilera for The Texas Tribune</cite>
</figcaption>