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Photo by: Jon Shapley(Staff photographer)
Renewable energy and battery storage have had years of booming growth in Texas.
But companies say the Texas Legislature is now considering bills that could be "industry killers." And if the U.S. Congress repeals federal clean energy tax credits, Texas could be hit harder than any other state.
One set of state-level bills would add novel permitting and setback requirements for wind and solar projects. Another bill, Senate Bill 388, would require at least 50% of new generation added to Texas' main power grid after 2026 to be "dispatchable," or, in other words, fueled by natural gas, coal or nuclear.
The author of SB 388, which passed the Texas Senate last week, says his bill is meant to "serve as an offset to the federal credits." Those credits, expanded by the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, supercharged clean energy investment, especially in Texas.
But the fate of those credits is uncertain under President Donald Trump, as Congress looks for ways to extend the Trump administration's 2017 tax cuts. If a repeal happens, two studies found that Texas could be the biggest loser of new investment and potential jobs — "because there is so much business planned here."
Read more here.
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Photo by: Julio Cortez, Associated Press
It would require developers of renewable generation to match their project capacities with new gas-fired generation — which could be impossible. That could hinder growth.
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What We're Reading
The late U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner spent years at the Texas Legislature trying to reform the state's electricity market on behalf of consumers, the Dallas Morning News writes.
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