Texas electric company responds to proposed power legislation
– By Stephen Heiser –
Texas lawmakers Republican Rep. Jim Keffer and Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis have proposed bills that would shake up the Texas wholesale and retail markets. One of the lawmakers' proposals would prevent a company from owning more than a 20% generation stake in a smaller market within the state. Currently, that 20% limit applies to the whole state market overseen by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).
The legislators also want to let local governments enter into low-rate electricity deals on behalf of their citizens who have not already entered into retail electric contracts
Luminant, a subsidiary of Energy Future Holdings Corp. (EFH), feels that these actions threaten affordable power pricing for Texas ratepayers and are concerned that such legislation would have a deleterious affect on the Texas power markets as a whole.
Luminant is a competitive power generation business, including mining, wholesale marketing and trading, construction and development operations. Luminant has over 18,300 megawatts of generation in Texas, including 2,300 megawatts of nuclear and 5,800 megawatts of coal-fueled generation capacity, and is building an additional 2,200 MW of coal-fueled generation capacity. Luminant is also the largest purchaser of wind-generated electricity in Texas and fifth largest in the United States.
Luminant has issued the following statement in response to wholesale electric bills filed:
Luminant Corporate Communications' LauraStarnes tells Nuclear Street, "This anti-Texan proposal is an attack on the free enterprise system and a strong-armed attempt to take private property while harming the long-term economic development of the state and disrupting a thriving competitive market."
Starnes say that "this legislation is being pushed by a self-serving group of regulatory lawyers seeking to decimate a market which has sparked $36 billion in new generation investment in the last decade, with billions more planned. Their goal is to create a problem that doesn’t exist while furthering their own business interests and ultimately hurting consumers."
"Luminant is one of the largest taxpayers in Texas and a proud partner in the communities where our 4,000 employees work and live. Our $118 million in state tax contributions last year supports local schools, hospitals, county governments and other entities across Texas. We are committed to a vibrant market with the strong regulatory oversight that exists today," adds Starnes.
EFH is a Dallas-based energy holding company that has a portfolio of competitive and regulated energy subsidiaries, primarily in Texas. Visit www.luminant.com or www.energyfutureholdings.com for additional information.