Brazos Electric Power Cooperative is an electrical generation and transmission cooperative based in Waco, Texas. In March 2021, it filed for bankruptcy protection as a result of losses arising from the February 2021 North American ice storm.[1]

Operations

In 2013, Brazos began constructing its current headquarters in Waco's Texas Central Industrial park.[2]

Brazos operates four plants which can produce up to 2,909 megawatts of electricity. Brazos was an initial investor in the Comanche Peak Nuclear Generating Station but later sold its interest to TXU. Brazos also began purchasing energy from Duke Energy's Lapetus Solar project in Andrews County, Texas via a power purchase agreement in January 2020.[3][4]

Brazos serves 16 local utility cooperatives and three municipal-owned electric companies.

Congressional Testimony

In 1967, Brazos sent general manager H. A. Dalton to appear before the 90th United States Congress to give testimony on introduced amendments to the Federal Power Act which were seeking to ensure electrical power service throughout the nation in the event of an emergency.[5][6] During the hearing Brazos' representative would affirm that the legislation would help prevent power loss, as had been seen during a local blackout in November 1965.[6]

Lawsuit

The Brazos Electric Power Cooperative was brought to court by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) over the TECQ denying an ad valorem tax exemption which ultimately would be settled in the Texas Supreme Court in May 2019.[7] In the case, the TCEQ claimed that heat recovery steam generators (HRSGs), devices the Texas Legislature considers "pollution control property," should not be exempt from the previously mentioned tax and that the legislature did not have the ability to give said exemption.[8] The court would rule that the legislature had the ability to exempt such generators and upheld the tax exemption and that the commission had in fact abused its discretion.[8][9][10]

Bankruptcy filing

As a result of the February 2021 North American ice storm, Brazos filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Because the storm had severely disrupted energy supplies in Texas for days, leading to a dramatic rise in the price of electricity, the company said it had received invoices from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) which, when combined, amounted to over $2.1 billion. Brazos said the massive bill forced it to file for bankruptcy protection to shield itself, its member cooperatives, and consumers, from the effect of trying to meet the cost.[1]

Member cooperatives

Bartlett Electric Cooperative
Comanche Electric Cooperative
CoServ Electric
Fort Belknap Electric Cooperative
Hamilton County Electric Cooperative
Heart of Texas Electric Cooperative
HILCO Electric Cooperative
J-A-C Electric Cooperative
MidSouth Synergy
Navarro County Electric Cooperative
Navasota Valley Electric Cooperative
PenTex Energy
South Plains Electric Cooperative
Tri-County Electric Cooperative
United Cooperative Services
Wise Electric Cooperative

References

  1. 1 2 Diaz, Jaclyn (2021-03-01). "Texas Energy Co-Op Files For Bankruptcy After Storm, High Bill". NPR. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  2. ↑ writer, MIKE COPELAND, Tribune-Herald staff (7 July 2013). "Mike Copeland: Fuzzy Taco bound for Waco". WacoTrib.com. Retrieved 2020-07-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ Garber, Jennifer (January 30, 2020). "Duke Energy Renewables' largest Texas solar project now online". www.bloomberg.com. PR Newswire. Retrieved 2020-07-20.
  4. ↑ Downey, John (January 30, 2020). "Duke Energy's latest solar project is its biggest in Texas — but not for long". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2020-07-20.
  5. ↑ Carver, John A (May 1969). "Legislating for Electric Power Reliability" (PDF). University of Denver. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-10-28. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  6. 1 2 Hearings, reports and prints of the Senate Committee on Commerce. 1967.
  7. ↑ "TJB | SC | Orders & Opinions | 2019 | May | May 3, 2019". www.txcourts.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-29.
  8. 1 2 "Ad Valorem Tax Exemption/Pollution Control Property: Supreme Court of Texas Addresses Challenge to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Interpretation". JD Supra. May 30, 2019. Archived from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-07-29.
  9. ↑ "Brazos Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. v. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality". Justia Law. January 24, 2019. Archived from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-07-29.
  10. ↑ Baer, Tonya (June 26, 2020). "Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Interoffice Memorandum" (PDF). Texas.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
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