US declares power emergency in Texas.

An arctic winter blast that was feared to cause an electricity shortage has prompted the US Energy Department to declare a power emergency in Texas, the country's second-largest state.

The ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas), the state grid operator that serves 90% of electric customers in Texas, requested the order on Friday, which allowed it to exceed certain air pollution limits to boost generation amid record power demand in the state.

"While the vast majority of generating units in the ERCOT region continue to operate without any problem, a small number of units have experienced operating difficulties due to cold weather or gas curtailments," said the order.

According to local media, some power production was shut down as power demand reached an unexpected high across Texas on Friday. ERCOT officials admitted that the demand had been underestimated.

According to ERCOT, the state's power grid was able to withstand freezing temperatures throughout much of the state on Saturday afternoon.

Over 74,000 megawatts of power were consumed in Texas on Friday morning, according to the Energy Department.

Earlier this week, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Jon Porter called the Arctic blast the "biggest test" of the state power grid since the February 2021 winter storm that killed over 200 Texans and pushed the state grid to the brink of total failure.