Amid record heat wave, Texas electric grid powers through

…A problem for grid operators nationwide is how long it can take to upgrade infrastructure and add new power sources. The country needs more transmission lines, and bureaucratic hurdles are leaving new renewable energy projects to wait years on the so-called interconnection queue before they can connect to an electrical grid.

“In many parts of the U.S., [interconnection] is the single biggest obstacle to building new power” capacity, says Devin Hartman, director of energy and environmental policy at the R Street Institute, a center-right think tank in Washington…