The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) has recently adopted rules that will protect consumers by introducing new requirements for utilities that lease and deploy mobile generation facilities.
Mobile generation facilities are power generating resources that can be positioned to temporarily provide electricity to consumers during an emergency.
The rule establishes the process and requirements for transmission and distribution utilities (TDU) in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) region that lease, deploy, and seek to recover the cost of mobile generation facilities, also known as temporary emergency electric energy facilities (TEEEF).
First, the rule requires that TDUs receive PUCT approval to lease mobile generation. A utility must submit an application that outlines, among other details, their prior experience using mobile generation, the total generating capacity the TDU is requesting permission to lease, the intended use-cases for each of the units, and an explanation of why leasing mobile generation is reasonable and necessary. Applications will be processed as contested cases at the PUCT, and any interested stakeholders will have a 30-day window to intervene in the proceeding.
The rule also requires utilities that have leases for mobile generation to submit after-action reports to the PUCT detailing if, and how, the mobile generation was deployed and used to restore power to customers during a “significant power outage,” a term that is defined in the rule. If the utility’s mobile generation assets were not used to restore power to customers during a significant power outage, the after-action report must explain why.