I have the same feelings about wind, as I had about the best oil field I ever found."—Boone Pickens, Billionaire and Texas Oilman on his plan to build a $10 billion dollar wind farm that could sustain an entire small city.

“Texas has been looking at oil and gas rigs for 100 years, and frankly, wind turbines look a little nicer.”—Jerry Patterson, Texas land commissioner, also firmly stating that Texas will continue to be number one in wind power in the foreseeable future.



Quotes courtesy of the New York Times

The nation's first new commercial coal-fueled plant capable of capturing carbon dioxide emissions is in the early proposal phase to develop a nearly 2,000 acre section of land in Sweetwater, Texas. Tenaska, an Omaha energy company, has filed an air permit with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) according to company officials, which is the first step in the process of gaining approval to begin construction on the $3 billion project.

Up to 90 percent of the CO2 would be captured, sold and transported through pipelines to the Permian Basin, where advanced oil recovery projects could utilize the stored gas to recover significant amounts of additional oil for the Texas market, a common practice in the Texas oil industry for more than 30 years. But how would a clean-coal power plant affect Texas electricity?

The 600 megawatt facility could potentially power 600,000 homes, though environmentalists have staunchly opposed building any additional coal-fueled power plants. The concern isn't necessarily focused just on the potential emissions from burning the fossil fuel, but also the environmental implications of storing and mining—including pollution of water, depletion of water supply and destruction of land to name a few. If approved, which will be in 2009 at the earliest and Tenaska won't conclude construction until 2014. Legislative and environmental battles may delay any development plans in the near future, pushing the probable time line even further away.

For more information, please see the Tenaska newsroom for updated press releases and information.

An influx of gas supply to Texas power plants could stall price fluctuations in 2008 for Texas electricity customers. New natural gas pipelines in Colorado and Louisiana are a key factor in slowing down price increases, as the U.S. Department of Energy estimates a 0.7 percent increase in retail electricity rates. 2007 alone saw a 3 percent increase in Texas, but the increased gas supply couple with milder weather has predictions showing a smoother 2008 for Texans. Considering nearly 47 percent of Texas power plants are gas fired, the pipeline ventures could be a significant factor in helping dampen prices.

For more in formation: See this article in the Houston Chronicle

Texas electricity is growing by leaps and bounds. Texas and Mexico recently cited the importance of working together to increase future developments in the energy industry, specifically the importance of expanding oil and gas pipelines between both areas, and combining powers to help in the development of wind power.

Mexico is currently the third largest exporter of oil to the U.S., and approximately 70 percent of gas produced in Texas comes from Mexico. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of this proposed partnership is the opportunity to increase the wind capacity in the U.S., which is quite possibly a significant increase considering the relatively untouched wind capacity in Mexico, and the annual growth of wind power in Texas.

For more information on future developments in the oil and gas industry, check out the The Oil, Gas and Energy Law Symposium's web site.