TEXAS — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott claimed a victory during a news conference Friday morning after the state’s heavily scrutinized power grid held up during the worst of this week’s winter storm.

Abbott said peak power demand occurred Friday morning when subfreezing temperatures gripped much of the state. Abbott said 86,000 megawatts were available and peak demand was about 69,000 megawatts.

He also said availability this week exceeded peak demand during the February 2021 storm that devastated Texas, resulting in thousands of power outages and leading to the deaths of 246 people. Abbott said the grid is now capable of 15% more energy production than it was at this time last year.

“The Texas electric grid is more reliable and more resilient than it’s ever been,” Abbott said.

Texas still saw in the ballpark of 70,000 power outages during the storm’s zenith on Thursday but officials attributed those to local issues. Abbott mentioned wind knocking power lines down and ice weighing down lines or bringing trees down on lines.

Just before 1 p.m. Friday 17,939 outages were still being reported across the state. Abbott urged people experiencing outages to contact their local providers. Outage reports can additionally be submitted here. 

A spokesperson for the Texas Railroad Commission said natural gas production wasn’t significantly hampered during the storm.