Wind generation on the Texas electric system recently hit several all-time highs. The latest all-time instantaneous peak of 12,238 megawatts (MW) reached on October 22 replaced the short-lived records of 11,467 MW on September 13 and 11,950 MW on October 21, based on data from the grid’s operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). Substantial additions of new wind generating capacity, coupled with strong wind conditions amid unseasonably warm early-autumn temperatures, drove the recent generation records. During the recent peaks in September and October, wind generators in ERCOT were running at an overall 75%–81% utilization of total generating capacity (called the capacity factor ), lower than the 83% capacity factor recorded during an earlier generation peak in February 2015 […]