The Texas Public Utility Commission has begun accepting applications for up to $1 billion in grants under one of the four Texas Energy Fund programs it administers. 

The PUC said May 28 that companies with facilities outside the ERCOT region can apply for funding for transmission and distribution infrastructure or generating facilities in the MISO, SPP and WECC portions of Texas. Qualifying projects must address the modernization of infrastructure, weatherization, reliability and resiliency improvements, or vegetation management, the commission said. 

Applicants must be an existing electric utility, cooperative, municipality or river authority that owns or manages transmission or distribution infrastructure, one or more generators, or a qualifying facility within Texas outside ERCOT. Applicants have to complete and submit an application on the TEF website and file a separate submission statement with the PUC (57830). 

The Outside ERCOT Grant Program is one of four TEF offerings, along with the In-ERCOT Generation Loan Program, the Completion Bonus Grant Program and the Texas Backup Power Package Program. 

The Texas Legislature initially allocated $5 billion to the fund, all of which went to the in-ERCOT program. The low-interest loan program, designed to add 10 GW in gas generation, has seen eight projects drop out or be removed in recent months. (See 2 More Projects Fall out of TEF Loan Program.) 

Lawmakers allocated an additional $5 billion to the fund in its 2025 biennial budget. An additional $2.2 billion will go to loans and grants for ERCOT gas plants, and $1.8 billion has been dedicated to the backup power package. 

The TEF was created by legislation in 2023 and approved by voters later that year in a constitutional election.