HOUSTON — In a northwest pocket of Texas’ largest city, two new natural gas plants are now sending electricity to the grid after a taxpayer-backed loan program helped finance the project.
But Republican lawmakers and state power regulators say the program may not bring enough natural gas generation online — electricity they argue is needed to handle the rise of renewables and data centers in the Lone Star State.
The $10 billion Texas Energy Fund was created in 2023 to spur more natural gas generation within the region managed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the state’s main grid operator.
So far, the fund has awarded roughly $3 billion to seven projects within ERCOT’s region — including more than $215.5 million for the two new combustion gas turbines at NRG Energy’s TH Wharton Generating Station that recently began commercial operations. Those two units will be able to produce as much as 456 megawatts combined — enough electricity to power 114,000 homes during times of peak demand.
