That happened early Tuesday, when ERCOT called on about 4,000 megawatts of battery storage to help meet the morning demand crunch. Those same batteries were charging up during the day to be ready for when the sun goes down and demand spikes again for the evening temperature drop.

Snow, sleet and freezing rain across Central and South Texas could bring down power lines, causing localized outages beginning Monday evening.

After a statewide blackout in 2021 and a massive Austin outage in 2023, cold weather means energy anxiety for many in Central Texas.

According to Operations Messages on the ERCOT website, around 5 a.m. ERCOT issued a Transmission Emergency in South and Southeast Texas.

Areas around Houston could receive up to six inches of snow, which would rank among the heaviest snowfalls ever for the city. Winter Storm Warnings stretch as far south as the Rio Grande.

HOUSTON — The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has issued a warning ahead of next week's extreme cold weather. ERCOT issued a Weather Watch for Jan. 20 through Jan. 23 due to the arctic blast that's expected to take over the state. The cold will cause a higher electrical demand as well as the potential for lower reserves.

ERCOT, the electrical grid operator for most of Texas, issued a weather watch for early next week when temperatures are expected to drop below freezing. The watch is scheduled to last Monday through Thursday and was issued “due to extreme cold weather across the ERCOT region, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves.”