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<\/p>\nHOUSTON, Texas \u2013 The U.S. Department of Energy, Texas Division of Emergency Management and CenterPoint Energy came together Tuesday to announce a major step forward in strengthening energy reliability for the Greater Houston region.<\/p>\n
A senior U.S. Department of Energy official unveiled a $50 million grid resilience investment at a press event held at CenterPoint Energy\u2019s Greenspoint Service Center in Houston, describing the funding as a critical move toward making energy more affordable, reliable and secure for consumers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was all about grid resilience,\u201d the official said. \u201cYou want affordable, reliable, and secure energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unlocking capacity from existing infrastructure<\/p>\n
The official said one of the fastest ways to bring new power to the grid and push prices down does not necessarily require building new facilities \u2014 it starts with what already exists.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fastest way to get new power onto the grid, which pushes down prices, is to liberate more power from the existing generation facilities we already have,\u201d the official said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s the sort of de-bottlenecking of transmission.\u201d<\/p>\n
The official pointed to New York State as an example of what happens when transmission infrastructure falls short, noting that pipeline constraints force the state to burn oil instead of cheaper natural gas during peak demand \u2014 driving electricity prices higher across New England.<\/p>\n
Natural gas, LNG exports, pipeline growth<\/p>\n
Beyond the grid resilience announcement, the official addressed questions about whether the U.S. can simultaneously grow liquefied natural gas exports and meet rising domestic demand \u2014 and expressed confidence the answer is yes.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan we grow our exports for LNG and grow our electricity production for new manufacturing, for super intelligence, for all of those things and keep natural gas prices down? Absolutely,\u201d the official said.<\/p>\n
The official noted that 20 years ago the U.S. was the world\u2019s largest importer of natural gas, with nominal prices more than twice as high as they are today. Growth in production scale, the official said, has been the key driver in pushing costs down.<\/p>\n
States with the strongest demand growth, the official added, have seen the best price performance \u2014 while states like California, New York and Massachusetts, which have reduced electricity production over the past decade, continue to struggle with high electricity prices.<\/p>\n
Diesel prices, global energy markets<\/p>\n
The official also addressed concerns about elevated fuel prices, acknowledging that ongoing global conflicts have impacted energy markets \u2014 particularly diesel.<\/p>\n
\u201cDiesel prices and gasoline prices both peaked last month,\u201d the official said, adding that the administration is actively pursuing multiple strategies to bring prices down further.<\/p>\n
Among those strategies, the official cited efforts to increase refinery throughput, work with allies in India to boost refinery output and coordinate with European partners on a potential release of diesel stores.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can have meaningful diesel price relief if the Europeans would agree, and I believe they will, to a coordinated release and the market can see that diesel flowing,\u201d the official said.<\/p>\n
The official also noted that a resolution \u2014 or even a reduction \u2014 in the Russia-Ukraine conflict could significantly increase the amount of diesel Russia is able to export to global markets, providing additional relief.<\/p>\n
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