City asks state to extend data center electricity cost protections to Borderland ratepayer
The City of El Paso is urging the Public Utility Commission of Texas to extend data center-related electricity cost protections to El Paso Electric customers, who are served by a grid outside ERCOT. This action aims to prevent residential ratepayers from covering infrastructure costs for large energy users, such as Meta's data center campus under construction in the city.
The City of El Paso has formally requested the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) to extend residential ratepayer protections related to data center electricity costs to customers served by El Paso Electric. These customers operate outside the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid, where similar protections are being developed following a directive from Gov. Greg Abbott.
City officials, including Mayor Renard U. Johnson, argue that all Texans, including the nearly 700,000 customers of El Paso Electric, deserve the same safeguards. They emphasize that the costs associated with infrastructure built to serve large electricity consumers like data centers should be borne by those creating the demand, not by working families, seniors, or small businesses.
The city's comments to the PUCT align with its ongoing participation in other proceedings involving El Paso Electric, such as the proposed Economic Development Rate and the McCloud Generation Facility. El Paso has seen significant data center development, including Meta's multi-billion-dollar campus, which has highlighted concerns about electricity demand, water use, and the equitable allocation of infrastructure costs.