Startup wants to use fracking tech to create renewable energy in South Texas
A Houston company plans to create storage caverns for pressurized water, which when released drives a turbine to send power to the grid. Full Story
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![Cindy D. Taff, CEO of Sage Geosystems, explains how they use wells to store energy at a site near Santa Elena in Starr County on March 22, 2023. The startup is testing storing energy in the ground.]()
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In regulating AI, Texas lawmakers face balancing act between its benefits and harms
A Senate committee discussed the potential pitfalls of artificial intelligence — and overregulating it. Full Story
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![The Capitol Dome overlooks the city on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, at the Texas Capitol Building in Austin.]()
Credit: Olivia Anderson/The Texas Tribune -
The oil industry is booming. This West Texas small business worries it’s been left behind.
Before the pandemic, Ben Bilbrey worked with some of the largest oil companies. Now he’s waiting for the phone to ring. Full Story
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![Benny Ford drives back to Benro Pump and Supply after picking up a downhole pumping unit from a well site Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, near Goldsmith.]()
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Donald Trump’s promise to “drill, baby, drill” probably won’t change much — least of all in Texas
Texas is producing so much natural gas right now companies are losing money. Full Story
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![A series of four drilling rigs operate in a row outside of Tarzan Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, in Martin County.]()
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Federal court orders regulators to fix process, reconsider gas export projects in South Texas
This week’s ruling was the latest twist since cities and groups in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley sued to block the projects. Full Story
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![Construction crews work at the 750-acre site of the proposed Rio Grande LNG facility Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024 in Brownsville.]()
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Ranchers reported abandoned oil wells spewing wastewater. A new study blames fracking.
An SMU study is the first scientific proof of a phenomenon local landowners have long warned was occurring. Full Story
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![Brandon Horton, a driver for Allied Eagle Transports, monitors the transfer of a load of salt water, a byproduct of fracking, to a salt water disposal site Tuesday, June 25, 2024, south of Midland.]()
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“Now is the time to take action”: Carbon monoxide poisonings after Hurricane Beryl are the highest since Texas winter storm
Little has changed since the 2021 Texas winter storm. Power outages following Beryl’s July landfall led to two deaths and roughly 400 Texans hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning. Full Story
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Chevron to move its headquarters from California to Texas
The oil giant said it will relocate to Houston. It’s the latest company seeking a laxer, more business-friendly regulatory environment in Texas. Full Story
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![A Chevron oil exploration drilling site near Midland, Texas, on Aug. 22, 2019.]()
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Rural Texas officials and civic leaders discuss economic development, health care and water supply in smaller communities
The Tribune’s rural symposium highlighted the challenges the state’s far-flung regions face — and the opportunities they offer. Full Story
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Unregulated oilfield power lines are suspected of sparking Texas wildfires
No state agency is taking responsibility for making sure the privately built lines that power many oil and gas sites are safe. Such lines have been blamed for sparking two recent Panhandle fires. Full Story
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![Craig Cowden shows parts of his property that are negligent from oil companies using his land, Sunday, July 7, 2024, at Breezy Point Ranch in Pampa, Texas. Cowden has made numerous complaints about the live wires and trash on his property.]()
Credit: Annie Rice for The Texas Tribune -
CenterPoint CEO promises improvements as Texas scrutinizes company’s Beryl response
Jason Wells told regulators the company will launch a new outage tracker by Aug. 1. It will also trim more tree limbs near power lines and hire an executive to focus on emergency response. Full Story
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![CenterPoint President and CEO Jason Wells addresses the Public Utilities Commission
at a hearing in Austin on July 25, 2024. The energy company proposed action plans for improved customer communication and restoring power quickly in future outages.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane for The Texas Tribune -
Attorney general investigating CenterPoint Energy after Hurricane Beryl’s long-lasting power outages
The company’s power outages in July have drawn the ire of state leaders. Here’s what you need to know. Full Story
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![Electric trucks line up to provide support with major power outages after Hurricane Beryl in Houston, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.]()
Credit: Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune -
A federal utility assistance program favors cold-weather states, giving less money to hot places like Texas
The program helps low-income people with heating and cooling bills, but advocates say it disadvantages Texas and other warm-weather states, even though extreme heat is a key cause of weather-related deaths. Full Story
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![Workers remove an AC unit from Paola Valdez-Lopez's mobile home in order to tow it out of Congress Mobile Home Park in Austin on Aug. 29, 2022.]()
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Residential solar is growing in Texas amid worries about reliable power during events like Hurricane Beryl
In Harris County, more federal money is available to help low- and moderate-income residents install rooftop solar. Full Story
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![Solar panels can be seen on the roofs of homes Sunday, July 7, 2024 in East Austin.]()
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Why Texas’ mass power outages continue to happen
Repairing electricity infrastructure after storms usually costs customers. So could strengthening it before the next weather event. Full Story
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![Electric trucks line up to provide support with major power outages after Hurricane Beryl in Houston, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.]()
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Houston property insurance is already expensive. Hurricane Beryl will make it worse.
Insurance researchers and analysts expect insurers will continue raising already high premiums — and become more selective with what type of damage they cover. Full Story
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![Mohammed Durvesh looks at the tree debris from tropical storm Beryl in front of his in Sugar Land home on Monday, July 8, 2024.]()
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Texans heading into a second week without electricity are battling heat, frustration and boredom
More than 200,000 CenterPoint Energy customers without power struggle with the heat one week after Hurricane Beryl swept through southeast Texas. Full Story
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![From left, Olga Minez and Gabriel Leal grill burgers for dinner on Sunday, July 14, 2024, at Aldine in Houston, Tx. In order to make the blackout more manageable, the couple and their five children have been using a generator left over from the previous year’s blackout.]()
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Abbott reprimands CenterPoint and calls for an investigation into the utility’s response to Beryl blackouts
Abbott demanded that the utility company produce a plan by the end of July outlining how it will improve power reliability ahead of future storms. Full Story
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![From left, front row: Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd, Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale hold a press conference at Gallery Furniture in Houston to address the restoration of power in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, on Sunday, July 14, 2024.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
“Get back up and go”: CenterPoint linemen take on a broken grid as Houstonians seethe
Beryl exposed how vulnerable the electric infrastructure is to failure, leaving residents angry and at risk. Full Story
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![Electric trucks line up to provide support with major power outages after Hurricane Beryl in Houston, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.]()
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“They need to fix something quick”: Texans without power for days are getting angry
Nearly a million Texans were still without power on Friday. And the utility company with the most outages was facing threats of violence. Full Story
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![Seby Godinho and Jack Souza run a convenience store without electricity in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl in Oyster Creek, Texas, on July 9, 2024.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif