Texas Energy and Power Newsletter: Texas Bets on Speed
April 29 — But as Gin Kinney, chief administrative officer at NRG Energy, told Energy Capital Podcast hosts Matt Boms and Josh Rhodes at CERAweek in Houston this year, the company’s planning horizon has collapsed to 12-18 months.
https://www.texasenergyandpower.com/p/ceraweek
Business Wire: Resilient Structures Expands Houston Facility, Plans Additional Production Lines to Meet Growing Demand
April 29 — The facility, located in Humble, Texas, will support utilities as they strengthen infrastructure to improve reliability in the face of more frequent severe weather. The site will play a key role in ongoing efforts to enhance service reliability for communities across the Gulf Coast region.
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260429237355/en/Resilient-Structures-Expands-Houston-Facility-Plans-Additional-Production-Lines-to-Meet-Growing-Demand
Guardian: CEOs of US’s top energy firms averaged nearly 16% pay raise to $12.3m, review finds
April 29 — The US’s top utilities’ CEOs enjoyed a 16% pay raise last year – to an average of $12.3m – even as consumers shoulder the pain from high bills spurred by continuing inflation, the Iran war and datacenter growth, a new review of industry financial documents shows.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/29/energy-ceo-pay-raises-2025
Reuters: Graphic Packaging, NextEra to build 250 MW solar plant in Texas
April 29 — Graphic Packaging Holding said on Wednesday it has signed an agreement with NextEra Energy Resources to build a 250-megawatt solar power plant in Texas, aiming to source renewable electricity and cut greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/graphic-packaging-nextera-build-250-mw-solar-plant-texas-2026-04-29/
Real Clear Energy: It’s Time for Texas to Get Competitive on Transmission Development
April 29 — Texas operates the most competitive wholesale electricity generation market in the United States. Every day, hundreds of power generators compete in ERCOT-run auctions to deliver the cheapest power to homes and businesses. The retail electric market is equally robust, with retail electric providers (REPs) vigorously competing for customers based on price, service, and preferences.
https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2026/04/29/its_time_for_texas_to_get_competitive_on_transmission_development_1179778.html
Utility Dive: What load growth demands of resource planning
April 27 — Utilities and grid operators are facing load growth projections that would have seemed implausible just five years ago. For example, as of last November, the Electric Reliability Corporation of Texas (ERCOT) reported that large loads seeking interconnection by 2030 would increase the peak demand served in ERCOT by 142 gigawatts, or nearly tripling its present-day demand.
https://www.utilitydive.com/spons/what-load-growth-demands-of-resource-planning/818035/
Utility Dive: What load growth demands of resource planning
April 27 — Utilities and grid operators are facing load growth projections that would have seemed implausible just five years ago. For example, as of last November, the Electric Reliability Corporation of Texas (ERCOT) reported that large loads seeking interconnection by 2030 would increase the peak demand served in ERCOT by 142 gigawatts, or nearly tripling its present-day demand.
https://www.utilitydive.com/spons/what-load-growth-demands-of-resource-planning/818035/
Rigzone: CenterPoint Targets 8 GW of Data Center Load in 3 Years
April 26 — CenterPoint Energy Inc on Thursday announced plans to energize 8 gigawatts (GW) of generation projects catered to data centers by 2029. The Houston, Texas-based power and gas utility said in its quarterly report it has 12.2 GW of firmly committed industrial load in Greater Houston.
https://www.rigzone.com/news/centerpoint_targets_8_gw_of_data_center_load_in_3_years-26-apr-2026-183533-article/
Fox26: Can Texas’ power grid handle the meteoric rise of AI data centers?
April 24 — Last week, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) presented a six-year forecast of how much power demand they expect in the near future. When the numbers showed a quadrupled peak demand by 2032, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) sent them back to the drawing board.
https://www.fox26houston.com/news/ai-data-centers-texas-power-grid
Business Insider: Big Tech’s AI data centers are pushing the power grid to its limits — and one state is feeling it the most
April 24 — Just last week, Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the Lone Star State’s grid operator, told state regulators that power demand is on track to quadruple by 2032, driven by an unprecedented surge in large data center projects seeking to connect to the grid.
https://www.businessinsider.com/texas-power-grid-demand-data-centers-2026-4
Utility Dive: CenterPoint to energize 8 GW of data center load by 2029
April 23 — Houston is now “firmly established as a location of choice for some of the world’s largest hyperscalers,” CenterPoint CEO Jason Wells said in the company’s first quarter earnings call.
https://www.utilitydive.com/news/centerpoint-energy-data-center-load-earnings/818293/
Denton Record-Chronicle: ERCOT says state’s energy demand is growing, but long-term forecast is likely overstated
April 23 — Officials with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas said last week that the state’s energy demand could reach nearly 368 gigawatts by 2032 — enough energy to power more than 73 million homes on a hot summer day or cold winter morning.
https://dentonrc.com/news/state/ercot-says-states-energy-demand-is-growing-but-long-term-forecast-is-likely-overstated/article_ec60419a-a352-4d84-9a72-a645830da07d.html
HillsboroReporter: Texas Data Center Boom Topic Of County Summit
April 23 — Moderated by Carlton Schwab, president of the Texas Economic Development Council, the question-and-answer session featured John Littlefield, president of Southwest Engineers; Larry McManus, from the Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism Division; and Eric Meier, supervisor of Planning Model Administration at ERCOT.
https://hillsbororeporter.com/texas-data-center-boom-topic-of-county-summit-p31596-54.htm
ABC 13 News: Two data centers proposed for Matagorda County, residents pushing back
April 23 — Data centers are large facilities filled with servers that store information people use every day on the internet, fueling AI and the digital data boom.
https://abc13.com/post/data-centers-proposed-matagorda-county-residents-pushing-back/18944946/
KHOU 11: NE Harris County community worried they’ll be left in the dark
April 23 —Residents in a northeast Harris County trailer home community said they’re worried about safety after receiving notice that their neighborhood’s street lights could soon go dark over an unpaid power bill.
https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/harris-county-community-no-lights/285-b8121f98-7985-4193-bc2d-3b1dc2120b01
Texas Standard: ERCOT forecast raises new questions about Texas power demand
April 22 — ERCOT says Texas electric demand could reach nearly 370,000 megawatts by 2032, quadrupling our current capacity. Much of the projected growth is tied to data centers, raising fresh questions about grid planning — including how many of those centers will actually be built.
https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/today-on-texas-standard-april-22-2026/
KCENTV: Salado residents pack meeting, urged to take action against proposed $2 billion transmission line project
April 22 — Dozens of Central Texans gathered to learn how to file as intervenors with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, a step that would give them a formal voice in the decision-making process for the project.
https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/salado-residents-meeting-urged-take-action-proposed-2-billion-transmission-line/500-a7341e98-64c1-41e5-ac9a-a3dc5a7ae242
Texarkana Gazette: Forecast for Texas electricity demand is being multiplied by data centers and crypto
April 21 — Recently, the existing tension between grid preparedness and aggressive projections has been laid bare by official estimates, with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas filing its newest long-term load forecast last week. The state’s grid operator predicted peak electricity demand surpassing 367 gigawatts by 2032 — more than four times the current all-time peak of 85,508 megawatts recorded in August 2023.
https://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2026/apr/21/forecast-for-texas-electricity-demand-is-being/