El Paso Electric Company operates as a public utility that engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in west Texas and southern New Mexico. The company also serves a full requirements wholesale customer in Texas.
The company owns or has significant ownership interests in various electrical generating facilities providing it with a net generating capacity of approximately 2,085 megawatts (MW). For the year ended December 31, 2019, the company’s energy sources consi...
El Paso Electric Company operates as a public utility that engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in west Texas and southern New Mexico. The company also serves a full requirements wholesale customer in Texas.
The company owns or has significant ownership interests in various electrical generating facilities providing it with a net generating capacity of approximately 2,085 megawatts (MW). For the year ended December 31, 2019, the company’s energy sources consisted of approximately 44% nuclear fuel, 44% natural gas, 12% purchased power and less than 1% generated by company-owned solar photovoltaic panels. As of December 31, 2019, the company had power purchase agreements for 107 MW from solar photovoltaic generation facilities and intends to expand its portfolio of renewable energy sources, particularly solar photovoltaic generation.
The company serves approximately 432,800 residential, commercial, industrial, public authority and wholesale customers. The company distributes electricity to retail customers principally in El Paso, Texas and Las Cruces, New Mexico (representing approximately 64% and 11%, respectively, of its retail revenues for the year ended December 31, 2019). In addition, the company’s wholesale sales include sales for resale to other electric utilities and power marketers. Principal industrial, public authority and other large retail customers of the company include U.S. military installations, such as Fort Bliss U.S. Army Post in Texas and White Sands Missile Range and Holloman Air Force Base (HAFB) in New Mexico, an oil refinery, various medical centers, twolarge universities and a steel production facility.
Facilities
As of December 31, 2019, the company’s net generating capability of approximately 2,085 MW consisted of the following:
Palo Verde
The company owns an interest, along withsix other utilities, in the three nuclear generating units and common facilities (Common Facilities) at Palo Verde. Arizona Public Service Company serves as operating agent for Palo Verde, and under the Arizona Nuclear Power Project Participation Agreement dated August 23, 1973, as amended (ANPP Participation Agreement), the company has limited ability to influence operations and costs at Palo Verde.
Fossil-Fueled Plants
The company owns the Newman Power Station (Newman), which consists of three conventional steam-electric generating units and two combined cycle generating units. The station operates primarily on natural gas but the conventional steam-electric generating units could also operate on fuel oil. The company owns the Rio Grande Power Station (Rio Grande), which consists of two conventional steam-electric generating units and one aeroderivative unit that operates on natural gas. Rio Grande Unit 6 with net generating capability of 45 MW, was initially placed in inactive reserve status in 2015, and has been activated as needed. The company owns the Montana Power Station (MPS), which consists of four aeroderivative generating units that operate on natural gas. The units could also operate on fuel oil. The company owns the Copper Power Station, which consists of a natural gas combustion turbine used primarily to meet peak demand.
Solar Photovoltaic Facilities
The company’s Texas Community solar facility, a 3 MW utility-scale solar plant located at MPS, and the El Paso Electric Holloman Atlas Solar Array, a 5 MW utility-scale solar plant located on HAFB, began commercial operations in 2017, and 2018, respectively. The company also owns six other solar photovoltaic facilities with a total capacity of 0.2 MW.
Transmission and Distribution Lines and Agreements
The company owns, or has significant ownership interests in, four 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission lines in New Mexico and Arizona and three 500 kV lines in Arizona. These lines enable the company to deliver its energy entitlements from its remote generation at Palo Verde to its service area (pursuant to various transmission and power exchange agreements to which the company is a party). The company also owns the transmission and distribution network within its New Mexico and Texas retail service area and operates these facilities under franchise agreements with various municipalities. Pursuant to standards established by the North American Electric ReliabilityCorporation and the Western Electricity Coordinating Council, the company operates its transmission system in a way that allows it to maintain system integrity in the event that any one of these transmission lines is out of service.
Regulation
The rates and services of the company are regulated by incorporated municipalities in Texas, the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has jurisdiction over the company's wholesale (sales for resale) transactions, transmission service and compliance with federally-mandated reliability standards.
History
El Paso Electric Company was founded in 1901. The company was incorporated in Texas in 1901.
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