Company behind 600-acre Bowie County purchase has applied to build a gas-fired power plant
Black Mountain, an energy company, has applied to build a 446-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant on 600 acres in Bowie County, Texas. This project, filed under its affiliate Fort Worth Power Core LLC, is linked to potential data center development, and local residents have already started opposing it due to environmental and resource concerns. Black Mountain is a significant data center developer in Texas, facing similar opposition on other projects.
Fort Worth-based energy company Black Mountain, through its affiliate Fort Worth Power Core LLC, has submitted an air-quality application to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for a 446-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant in western Bowie County, Texas. This development follows the company's quiet acquisition of nearly 600 acres in the Red Lick and Leary area.
The proposed "Bowie County Power Plant" is connected to Black Mountain's broader activities as an active data center developer in Texas. While the application details a power plant, similar permits obtained by Fort Worth Power Core elsewhere in the state have indicated the turbines could provide backup power for new data centers or supply electricity to the broader grid. Black Mountain is also behind a planned $10 billion data center campus in Fort Worth, which has faced city council delays amid resident concerns.
Local opposition to the Bowie County project has already emerged, with yard signs bearing messages like "HELP US STOP THIS DATA CENTER COMING TO REDLICK/LEARY." Residents' concerns echo those seen nationally and in other parts of Texas regarding the substantial water and electricity demands of large data centers, as well as air emissions from on-site gas generation. Black Mountain and Fort Worth Power Core have not responded to requests for comment.