In Private, a Top Regulator Pledged He Would Try to Protect Profits Made During the Blackouts

March 16, 2021 ☼ texaspower-failurederegulation

Source: Texas Monthly - Link

Texas Monthly has obtained a recording of a 48-minute call on March 9 in which Texas Public Utility Commission chairman Arthur D’Andrea discussed the fallout from the February power crisis with investors. During that call, which was hosted by Bank of America Securities and closed to the public and news media, D’Andrea took pains to ease investors’ concerns that electricity trades, transacted at the highest prices the market allows, might be reversed, potentially costing trading firms and publicly traded generating companies millions of dollars.

Regulators cozy with the regulated. I doubt there were kickbacks, but it wouldn’t hurt to look.