Sempra announced new developments in Texas relating to last week's endorsement by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) of several new transmission projects serving the southern Dallas–Fort Worth area and the I-35 corridor.
Together with a series of other high-voltage upgrades in the southern Dallas–Fort Worth area endorsed by ERCOT in April, these projects are expected to require new investment of over $7 billion. When placed in service, which is anticipated between 2026 and 2034, these projects will support approximately 16 gigawatts of new electric demand. Oncor Electric Delivery Company (Oncor), of which Sempra owns an 80.25% stake, is the state's largest transmission and distribution electric utility and expects to construct the vast majority of these projects.
"At a time when the state of Texas is experiencing unprecedented growth in electricity demand, Oncor has taken an important leadership role in advancing critical new infrastructure for the benefit of its customers," said Jeffrey W. Martin, chairman and CEO of Sempra. "The timing is also important. As the interconnection rules for new large load customers continue to develop, Oncor is proactively building out and strengthening its supply chain and construction capabilities to accelerate the ongoing expansion of its electric grid."
Oncor is currently executing a company-record $47.5 billion base capital plan for 2026 through 2030. The estimated capital expenditures through 2030 for these new investments are captured within the previously identified $10 billion incremental capital opportunity to Oncor's base capital plan, with a portion representing additional projected investment extending beyond the current five-year plan period. Projects remain subject to additional regulatory approvals.
ERCOT is the region's independent system operator responsible for managing the flow of electric power to more than 27 million Texas customers, or about 90 percent of the state's electric load, and coordinating grid interconnectivity. To address accelerating demand, the ERCOT board of directors has approved a system-wide approach to sequence large-load interconnection requests, which is known as the Batch Zero process. The PUCT is expected to consider final approval of the Batch Zero process later this month. Thereafter, ERCOT is expected to announce full details on the amount of additional transmission upgrades that will be required to support a significant increase in projected electricity demand from large load customers in the second quarter of 2027.
These recent developments at ERCOT provide further momentum and visibility to the strong projected growth beyond Oncor's base capital plan, as well as the company's dedication to supporting its customers' efforts in powering the Texas economy.
