The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, also known as, ERCOT, is warning Texas citizens about a possible deep freeze this Winter. The Texas grid operator is cautioning the state that they are due for another extreme winter storm, similar to what took place in 2021 where millions of Texans were left without power and where many industrial plants underwent havoc given they did not have reliable winterization solutions in place. Chris Coleman, ERCOT Supervisor of Operational Forecasting stated, “this winter should be approached with the potential for an extreme cold event. In fact, recent trends suggest a greater-than-average change of occurrence” in his Dec 2024 update on winter weather for the state of Texas.
In anticipation of another possible deep freeze, it is critical for industrial facilities to be well prepared to handle freezing cold temperatures, we do not want to see a repeat of the damage caused by Winter Storm Uri back in 2021. One of the most reliable things that can be done is to install an electric heat tracing system.
What can go wrong on an industrial site during Winter?
Snow and ice build-up can cause structural failures, pipes carrying critical liquids can freeze, gas supplies can be interrupted impacting energy supply to critical areas of the site, site wide freezing can occur causing lines to stop working, and an increase in personnel safety given slips and falls from ice/snow build-up can also result. In addition to the many things that can easily go wrong, the cost of repairs and the significant downtime needed to fix such problems and not be operational is a massive concern for industrial plant operators.
How can heat-tracing help avoid all these problems?
An electric heat tracing system is designed to protect equipment from freezing temperatures and ensure liquid that is flowing through a pipe continues to flow, it replaces the heat loss through the thermal insulation. RAYCHEM provides electric heat tracing for various applications including pipe freeze protection, process temperature maintenance, tank heating, tank insulation, frost heave protection and long pipeline heating. Various technologies are used to provide heat when and where you need it from self-regulating cables to power-limiting cables to mineral insulated cables. RAYCHEM heat tracing systems are very durable and reliable and are third party agency approved for use in hazardous and non-hazardous areas. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of the USA (FERC), stated “protecting just four types of power plant components from icing and freezing could have reduced outages by 67 percent in the ERCOT region” in its final report about the aftermath of Winter Storm Uri in February 2021. These findings point out how critical protection from freezing temperatures is in the Winter months amongst power plants across the nation.
Furthermore, as part of FERC’s many recommendations as part of their final report, one such recommendation urges natural gas producers to implement measures to protect against freezing and adding “heating equipment” where appropriate. Both FERC and ERCOT warn about the dangers of a lack of industrial winterization and the havoc they can wreak on the energy sector.
Be proactive in protecting your industrial plant from Winter’s wrath, speak to one of our RAYCHEM winter experts today and ensure your plant is safeguarded against costly damage and repairs.
Sources:
https://www.ercot.com/files/docs/2024/11/22/6-2024-2025-winter-weather-update.pdf
https://www.texastribune.org/2024/12/03/texas-power-grid-ercot-winter-forecast-extreme-cold/
https://www.chron.com/weather/article/texas-freeze-ercot-19959298.php