Two More Texas Energy Fund Projects Dropped From the Program
Seven of the initial 17 projects are now out of the TEF
AUSTIN, Texas – In filings submitted Tuesday, the executive director of the Public Utility Commission of Texas notified two Texas Energy Fund projects that they failed the state’s due diligence requirements and would be rejected for funding, making them the sixth and seventh projects announced at the TEF’s launch that are no longer part of the program.
The rejections of EmberClear Management/Jupiter Island Capital and Frontier Group of Companies are another setback for a program that state leaders pitch as the answer to fast-growing electricity demand and a protection against a disaster like Winter Storm Uri.
“The governor and the Texas Legislature put almost all of their grid stabilization eggs in this one basket, and there is no indication the TEF can deliver on its promise anytime soon – or ever,” said Adrian Shelley, the Texas director of Public Citizen. “It’s time for a Plan B that embraces proven affordable solutions – like energy efficiency, demand response and renewable energy – that can be implemented sooner. The Legislature is running out of time to act, and so is a state electric grid that may be unable to keep up with demand before the TEF generates its first megawatt of electricity.”
Last month, Constellation Energy notified the state it would not seek TEF funding for a proposed project in Granbury. WattBridge, approved for TEF financing for four projects totaling more than 1,600 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Houston area, notified the state it was also withdrawing.
No TEF project has broken ground. Because of supply chain challenges, a new methane-powered plant is unlikely to start operations before 2029.