Austin, Texas – This week, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) approved staff to develop a final order to implement the Permian Basin Reliability Plan to address energy reliability concerns in the largest oil and natural gas producing basin in the nation. Following the approval of the final order, likely to occur at an upcoming meeting in October, applicable transmission service providers will file applications to initiate construction on new facilities and upgrades that will ensure availability and reliability of electricity in the Permian region.
“House Bill 5066 was a top priority supported by TIPRO during the 88th Texas Legislative Session, which provided for the prioritization of the development of transmission projects for the Permian Basin,” said Ed Longanecker, president of TIPRO. “With load demand for the oil and natural gas industry already unmet and expected to increase significantly over the next decade, this plan will provide critical investment in transmission, related infrastructure, and capacity. We applaud the PUC for advancing this important effort to address insufficient transmission access in the Permian Basin and to support continued growth in our industry and state from an economic and energy security perspective,” concluded Longanecker.
The plan was built on a study of future oil and gas demand performed by S&P global, which shows that by 2030 Transmission Service Providers (TSP) anticipate approximately 24 GW of load in the region, including 12 GW of oil-and-gas related load and another 12 GW of additional load largely attributable to data centers, crypto mining, and hydrogen electrolysis facilities. The forecast also shows another 3 GW of oil-and-gas-related load by 2038 for a total load projected demand of 27 GW. The demand is equivalent to almost 1/3 of the peak demand of the entire ERCOT system as of today. Based on these forecasts, ERCOT identified a significant number of transmission upgrades that will be required to meet these future demands.
