Texas to double $5 billion state fund aimed at expanding the power grid

The state of Texas plans to double a state fund aimed at expanding the power grid as demand for electricity is expected to nearly double over the next six years.

The state will look to boost the Texas Energy Fund from $5 billion to $10 billion, Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced on Monday. The fund was approved by voters in November 2023 to offer low-interest loans to incentivize development of new gas-fueled power plants.

The announcement comes soon after a new prediction by the state’s main grid operator that said electricity needs will surge in the coming years. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas estimated that the state’s main power grid would have to provide nearly double the amount of power it currently supplies by 2030.

The numbers in the new forecast, Abbott and Patrick said in a press release, “call for an immediate review of all policies concerning the grid.”

The state’s grid came under intense public and legislative scrutiny after a winter storm in 2021 knocked out its operations, causing dayslong power outages across the state in freezing temperatures that left millions of Texans without lights or heat. Hundreds died.

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