In 2023 approximately 95 MW of distributed energy development for commercial and industrial sites was initiated across the competitive retail power markets of Texas. This includes distribution-connected battery energy storage systems or BESS. Let’s take a closer look at the activity in Oncor’s and CenterPoint’s territories since they had overwhelmingly the highest application and development activity in the state.

In CenterPoint territory, over 43 MW of DERs were installed over 95% of which were in dispatchable reliability systems. Natural gas made up 36 MW and diesel 5 MW of the new reliability systems. There was virtually no BESS development behind the meter – although a considerable number of BESS projects are in the queue. Solar projects totaled 2 MW.

In Oncor territory, over 47 MW of DERs were installed, with 66% of which as dispatchable reliability systems. Natural gas made up 20 MW and diesel 11 MW of the new reliability systems. BESS added 12 MW of installed capacity, while Solar projects added 4 MW.

Through 2023, gas and diesel reliability systems clearly dominated DER development on the CenterPoint and ONCOR systems, but the interconnection queue indicates that BESS could see rapid expansion.

We will take a closer look at what is shaping up for 2024 in our next article.