CenterPoint Energy settles rate case, will lower power costs for customers
Houston’s main electrical company backed off plans to raise rates after facing sharp criticism for its response to massive power outages after Hurricane Beryl. 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 -
An East Texas town debates where to place EV charging stations as Trump threatens subsidies
Some residents see the charging stations as an economic boom to the town, while others find it an assault on the oil and gas industry in Texas. Full Story
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![Traffic makes its way throught the intersection of Loop 281 and Gilmer Road in Longview on Friday January 24, 2025.]()
Credit: Michael Cavazos for The Texas Tribune -
Data centers are booming in Texas. What does that mean for the grid?
As energy demand surges, largely due to crypto mining facilities, data centers and industrial electrification, Texas officials are looking at how to increase supply and shore up the grid. Full Story
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![Network cables can be seen in a data center.]()
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Texas regulators overhaul oilfield waste rule for the first time in four decades
The new rule modernizes some aspects of commercial oilfield waste disposal and recycling. But rules for burying oilfield waste on private property remain limited. Full Story
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![An aerial view of produced water ponds constructed by Martin Water in Lenorah.]()
Credit: Julian Mancha for The Texas Tribune/Inside Climate News -
Oil companies leaked less methane in West Texas, a new report says. Environmentalists are skeptical.
Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere and is 80 times the potency of carbon dioxide. Full Story
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![An array of pumpjacks operate outside of Tarzan on Sept. 15, 2023. Tarzan is an unincorporated town north of Midland, about halfway between Andrews and Big Spring. in Martin County.]()
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Texas has a big water problem. This state lawmaker hopes he has the solution.
Texas’ population is booming and there is not enough water for everyone. State Sen. Charles Perry hopes to fix that. Full Story
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![State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, on the Senate floor on May 15, 2019.]()
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The Texas Legislature is back. Here’s what we’re watching.
From debating school vouchers and improving the state’s water supply to reining in property taxes, the GOP-led body will look to pass its conservative priorities amid fighting within the party. Full Story
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![State Representatives and their families gather on the House floor on the opening day of the 88th Legislative Session at the state Capitol in Austin on Jan. 10, 2023.]()
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As bitter cold sweeps through Texas, ERCOT says the power grid is stable
The state’s electric grid operator issued a weather watch until Friday but says it doesn’t expect power disruptions as demand rises. Full Story
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![Reliability Coordinators monitored the state power grid during a tour of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) command center in Taylor in 2012.]()
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South Texas coal-fired power plant to switch to clean energy after receiving more than $1 billion in federal money
San Miguel Electric Cooperative's plan to turn into a solar and battery plant will leave only 14 coal-fired power plants in the state. Full Story
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![The San Miguel Electric Cooperative power plant can be seen in the background of a sign for the Peeler Ranch on April 26, 2019.]()
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Texas regulators shelve an electricity market reform proposal they say does too little to shore up grid
The Public Utility Commission found that the performance credit mechanism, a financial tool the Legislature capped at $1 billion, would only marginally improve reliability of the state power grid. Full Story
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![Public Utilities Commission Chairman Thomas Gleeson speaks during a meeting on Thursday, July 11, 2024.]()
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Growing oil industry support for methane reduction rule could help it survive Trump’s return
Texas regulators are taking public comment about how they should implement an EPA rule to reduce methane leaks from the oil and gas industry. Full Story
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![ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 20, 2024: A wall containing Bruder drill site owned by Total in Arlington, Texas on Wednesday, November 20, 2024. The city of Arlington approved Total’s application to drill and frack 11 gas wells at this site, which sits over 300 feet away from residential homes. CREDIT: Desiree Rios for Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Desiree Rios for The Texas Tribune -
Federal appeals court upholds $14.25 million fine against Exxon for pollution in Texas
A 2021 ruling found the oil giant committed more than 16,000 violations of the Clean Air Act at its Baytown refinery and plant. Full Story
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![Smoke rises from a fire at Exxon Mobil's refining and chemical plant complex in Baytown on July 31, 2019.]()
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Recycled oilfield water could aid drought-stricken West Texas
Oilfield wastewater injected underground is causing earthquakes and blowouts. Now, pilot projects are exploring whether this water could be treated and used to grow crops. Full Story
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![Eric Selinger walks on his property near the Pecos River outside Imperial on Oct. 8. He previously farmed shrimp but now hopes that treated produced water could bring the land back to life.]()
Credit: Martha Pskowski/Inside Climate News -
Texas’ push to meet soaring power demand with nuclear energy could spark uranium mining revival
State leaders want nuclear reactors to provide consistent, low-carbon power to large industrial facilities. But in South Texas, locals worry what a uranium mining boom could mean for their groundwater. Full Story
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![Misty Ortega lives adjacent to Uranium Energy Corporation's site for deep injection disposal of radioactive waste and has campaigned against the project in Goliad County.]()
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Grid operator says Texas is better prepared for extreme cold this winter
ERCOT says conditions this winter could spark extreme cold, but additional power supply and continued weatherization efforts will lower the risk of power outages. Full Story
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![The ERCOT Board of Directors convene for a meeting at the organization's headquarters in Austin on Dec. 3, 2024.]()
Credit: Noah Devereaux for the Texas Tribune -
Crypto miners must register with state and reveal power usage under new Texas rule
The Public Utility Commission of Texas adopted the rule amid surging demand for power across the state and a growing crypto mining industry in Texas. Full Story
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![Pods full of computers that are submerged in fluid at the crypto mining facility, Helios, near Afton, on Sept. 15, 2022. The fluid keeps the computers well under manufacturer-designed temps to avoid overheating.]()
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Texas reaches $12.6 million settlement in connection with 2019 Port Neches chemical plant explosion
The settlement directs TCP Group to repair equipment and to pay $12.6 million in penalties for clean air violations at its Southeast Texas facility. Full Story
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![A process tower flies through the air after exploding at the TPC Group Petrochemical Plant, after an earlier massive explosion sparked a blaze at the plant in Port Neches on Nov. 27, 2019.]()
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A West Texas lawmaker wants to redirect millions of tax dollars to plug abandoned wells, curb emissions
The proposal comes after the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency said it needs more money to plug wells that are in some instances erupting. Full Story
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![State Rep. Brooks Landgraf, R-Odessa, listens to Jazmin Cazares as she testifies before the House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety at the state capitol in Austin on June 23, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Republican Christi Craddick reelected to Railroad Commission, the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency
The three-member board oversees Texas’ oil and gas industry. The agency has faced criticism over safety concerns linked to fracking, well blowouts and groundwater protection. Full Story
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![Christi Craddick, chair of the Texas Railroad Commission, speaks to delegates at the 2024 Texas GOP Convention in San Antonio on May 25, 2024.]()
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State oil regulator requests $100 million to tackle West Texas well blowouts
Abandoned wells in the Permian Basin are increasingly erupting with briney, polluted water. The Texas Railroad Commission says it needs emergency money to respond. Full Story
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![Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Christi Craddick, then-Chairman Wayne Christian, and Commissioner Jim Wright listen during an RRC hearing in Austin on Nov. 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Dimitri Staszewski for The Texas Tribune