Convenience Big Store: Could a new EPA rule shift grids away from fossil fuels?

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Only a handful of power plant owners likely responded to a request issued by the Texas power grid operator to delay maintenance scheduled for Tuesday, April 16 and Wednesday, April 17.

Photo by: Kirk Sides/Staff photographer

In the air

Texas natural gas producers face an uncertain future under new regulations announced by the Biden administration Thursday that would force power companies to rein in greenhouse gas emissions, reporter James Osborne writes.

Coal and new natural gas plants would be required to control 90% of their greenhouse gas emissions through the installation of carbon capture and storage systems by 2032, potentially forcing a shift away from fossil fuels in the power sector. Existing natural gas plants would be governed under separate rules, currently under study at EPA.

The rules would make a large share of future natural gas demand dependent on a carbon capture technology that remains expensive and not yet proven at scale. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said he was confident carbon capture technology, which is supported by new lucrative federal tax credits, would be ready.

The rule faces formidable legal challenges, with Republican state attorneys general, including Texas' Ken Paxton, already lining up to file suit.