Winter storm's extreme cold weather could test power grid in Texas and beyond
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Jan. 22, 2026, 1:26 PM ESTBy Minyvonne Burke
The Texas power grid system, which failed during a winter storm five years ago, could be put to the test this weekend as the region faces subfreezing temperatures and dangerous wind chills.
But Texas officials and power company executives are not expecting a widespread failure like the one that left millions without power and led to more than 200 deaths in 2021. They point to infrastructure improvements made since that storm that make the system less vulnerable to freezing temperatures.
An arctic air mass is set to begin on Friday and will affect regions spanning 2,000 miles across the country, from Texas to the East Coast. At least 132 million people are under weather-related alerts nationwide, stretching from the Arizona-New Mexico border to upstate New York.
Dallas, which was severely affected by the power grid failure, is forecast to see 36 straight hours of freezing precipitation, with an accumulation of 1 to 3 inches of snow and 0.25 to 0.50 inches of ice.
The National Weather Service in Fort Worth said in a post on X that wind chill values of -10 to 0 degrees are expected across the state.
The state's largest electrical grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), said it is ready for the storm and expects "sufficient generation to meet demand this winter."
"ERCOT will continue to deploy all available resources to manage the grid reliably and coordinate closely with the Public Utility Commission, generation providers, and transmission utilities," a spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The grid infamously failed following a February 2021 storm, leaving millions of customers without power in subfreezing temperatures.
During that storm, power plants and grid equipment froze in the frigid temperatures as the demand for heat climbed. Customers were left to deal with near-freezing homes, no clean drinking water, burst pipes and no electricity for days. More than 200 people died.
Amid the disaster, wholesale electricity prices hit the system cap of $9,000 per megawatt-hour. In a class action civil lawsuit against wholesale electricity provider Griddy, customers complained that their monthly bills rose to several hundred or even thousands of dollars during the storm.
The company, accused of price gouging, was eventually banned by ERCOT from operating, essentially leading it to shut down.
ERCOT said it has made several improvements since 2021, including weatherization and inspection of electric generation units and transmission facilities, a contingency reserve and scheduled maintenance.
Pablo Vegas, the company's president and CEO, said in a Thursday press conference that they have done over 4,000 inspections of power-generating facilities and transmission facilities over the last few years.
Matthew Boms, executive director of the Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance, told NBC News that winterization and weatherization of the grid are among the most important changes ERCOT has made.
"Technically speaking, that means insulating pipes, valves, instruments so they don't freeze, adding heat tracing, like electric heaters, on critical equipment, protecting sensors, control systems and weatherproofing," Boms said in a phone call.
"For the natural gas pipelines, it means insulating and heating the wellheads, valves, compressors, protecting all the gas processing equipment, and adding backup generators," he continued. "That's huge because in 2021, the gas system failed first and that's what took the power plants down with it."
Boms said the power grid also uses renewable energy and battery storage, something that wasn't in place in 2021 during winter storm Uri. He said the batteries save power "when we have extra, and they give it back to the grid when it needs it the most."
"Right now, we've got about 17,000 megawatts of battery storage. We're actually leading the country in battery storage and virtually none of that was online in 2021," he explained. "That's a brand new resource we brought into our grid. Batteries make a huge difference when it comes to this type of winter event."
Boms said local outages from ice and downed trees are still possible, but the "chances of a Uri-scale failure are far lower than they were back then."
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that he is enacting a disaster declaration covering 134 counties across the state ahead of the incoming "severe" storm.
In addition to several inches of snow, a dangerous ice storm is also expected in parts of the southern Plains. Icing amounts of 0.50 to 1.00 inches are possible.
"The ERCOT grid has never been stronger, never been more prepared and is fully capable of handling this winter storm," Abbott said at a Thursday news conference. "There is no expectation whatsoever that there's going to be any loss of power from the power grid."
And Texas is not the only state bracing for possible power outages due to the dangerous storm. As of Thursday afternoon, state of emergency declarations were issued in Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas and North Carolina.
The National Weather Service for Raleigh cautioned that widespread snow, freezing rain and sleet are expected Saturday through Monday, which could lead to moderate to major impacts in infrastructure, transportation and power outages.
A spokesperson with Oklahoma Gas & Electric Company said crews are already on standby to handle any potential increase in demand due to the frigid temperatures.
"We're always prepared, and everyone is always on standby at OGE," the spokesperson, Sheradee Hurst, told NBC affiliate KFOR of Oklahoma City. "This is what they train for. Our crews spend so much time invested in training so that they are prepared for situations like this."
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A former NVer in Texas with whom I'm friends on Facebook has already lost power for a while this morning. It's back on now. I hope it stays that way.
To be fair the power can go down anywhere, especially during the winter. In fact I lost power for around 4 hours this morning and considering it was -40 it started getting cool inside the house fast.
Best of luck to everyone facing rough weater this week
It did in 2021.
It's interesting that people only seem to remember that as a Texas issue, but there were at least 14 states involved.
I think that may be because of the high death toll in Texas and maybe because people don't normally associate Texas and snowstorm (I know I don't)
I guess that's fair.
It was a wild time. There was snow on the beach in Galveston for the first time since the 1880s.
Lol a beach sounds nice at this time of year
Arvo..we've got beaches..lots and lots..and it's nice and warm..no snow flakes here...😁
Absolutely stunning, thanks I needed that it was -38 here yesterday.
Morning free..you are more than welcome..I can't fathom all that snow etc and I don't know if it's me but..
When we see the pictures here of pile ups etc people seem to be driving way to fast for the conditions..a couple of cars crash and everyone seems to keep piling into them.
I have never driven in conditions like that so I guess I can't judge..
Was just listening to the radio doing the brekkie dishes..on Tuesday it is going to be 46C.
Want to trade places..😁🥵
The beach is Whitehaven in far north Queensland...
Magnificent area but unfortunately prone to irukandji jellyfish which are deadly..
Give me some time to think about it......Ok done absolutely yes. I can be there in two days and will leave you the key to my place under the welcome mat
Lol only once in the recorded history of Canada have we had a temperature like that
Nah getting pretty common these days here..
Yep could do a house swap but you have to like cats!!
Especially at 4am when it's bellowing because the dish is only half full and it's starving to death..🙄
I can do that, though I haven't had one since my 21 year old cat named Tinkerbell (I did not name her) passed years ago
I have a sister that lives in San Antonio . Her power was out for three days during the 2021 episode. People down there freak out at the cold. If it goes below 40 down there it leads the local news.
We'll know it's bad when Ted Cruz heads for Cancun.
Arvo.. pardon my ignorance but what does salt do to snow on roads and foot paths?
Does it melt it or something so you can get traction on it?
Yes to both. Salt raises the freezing temperature of water, so it melts ice and snow. It won't work below a certain temperature, though, and that temp depends on what kind of salt is used. And it doesn't do much if the road hasn't been plowed or the sidewalk shoveled.
Until it dissolves, it gives some traction. Cinders and sand are used for traction, too, depending on where you live.
Ahh thanks for that..if it snows on top of salt will it melt? or do you have to put more salt on top of that again?
Find this quite fascinating who thought of salt originally?... does it rust out your cars?
If enough snow falls, the salt loses effectiveness, and yes, you'd have to put down more.
I'm not sure whose idea it was originally.
It is hard on cars. Most of us wash our cars as soon as the roads are dry again to minimize damage.
and can kill any plants it leaches into come spring
And it attracts deer to roadsides and begs them to jump out in front of cars.
At one time it was the primary driver of rust in American cars.
Most of the cars we drive don't have steel body components anymore, so they don't typically rust like they used to. That said, if you're buying a used car, there is a small premium on cars that have been owned in places like Arizona or Texas where we don't salt the roads.
The reason I refuse to drive on my rural highway after dark. Well that and mooses, bears, wolves, etc
I've hit two deer, and had closer encounters than I'd have liked with several bears, both while driving and on foot. Glad I don't need to worry about wolves or bears. Just deer and coyotes.