El Paso Electric is close to getting state regulators’ approval for a $551.8 million, 366-megawatt power plant to be built for the Meta Platforms data center complex in far Northeast El Paso.
The city of El Paso and others are opposing the McCloud power plant.
Two Texas administrative law judges issued a report Wednesday, Sept. 23, recommending that the Public Utility Commission of Texas approve construction of the plant, but on the condition that EPE ratepayers be protected from paying the facility's construction and operating costs.
EPE officials have proposed a so-called “bridge period” of up to five years, in which Meta will be responsible for all construction and operating costs for the power plant until it's tied to EPE’s grid.
“EPE has left
open the possibility that other customers may pay a portion of the costs in the future,” judges Cassandra Quinn and Arthur D’Andrea noted in their decision.
For EPE to include the McCloud power plant costs in future electric rates, it would need to show that the power plant’s capacity is needed for its grid, is cost-effective, and increases EPE's grid reliability, the judges wrote.
The judges issued their recommendation after hearing arguments from EPE and opponents during a July 8 videoconference, and receiving post-hearing briefs before closing the proceeding Aug. 6.
The PUCT's five commissioners are expected to make a decision on EPE's application by December.
Meta, which operates Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is leasing the $14 billion data center campuson 1,000 acres at Stan Roberts Sr. Avenue and U.S. Highway 54, near the New Mexico state line. It's under construction and is expected to open in 2028.
The McCloud plant cost had initially been projected at $500 million by EPE. But in the hearing judges’ report, the cost was put at $551.8 million.
EPE’s “lack of analysis regarding options (to the McCloud plant) is concerning,” the judges wrote.
“This case presents a unique scenario in which a single large customer has essentially determined the resource that will be used to serve its need, while agreeing to pay the cost for that resource,” the judges wrote.
“Without the customer being responsible for that cost, the process used to select the resource would be wholly inadequate.”
The judges concluded the McCloud plant will have minimal environmental effects. It will not be water-intensive because the generators are air-cooled and it will have air-pollution controls under Texas environmental permits, the judges wrote.
In late 2025, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state's environmental regulator, approved a standard air permit for the plant, with no public notice or public meetings required. The permit allows the plant to emit almost 309 tons of seven pollutants per year.
In a statement, city officials said the judges' decision "appears to address an important issue the city raised in the case: protecting existing EPE customers from costs associated with the proposed facility."
However, it's premature to interpret the specific conditions or long-term implications, according to the statement.
El Paso Electric officials did not immediately respond to a request for comments on the judges' recommendation.
More: Meta hires El Paso political insider to build data center trust
EPE contracted with Enchanted Rock, a Houston-based company selected by Meta for its expertise in quickly building on-site generation for data centers.
The power plant, to be built on 31 acres adjacent to the Meta data center complex, will use 813 natural-gas-fueled generators arranged in 168 rows to produce up to 366 megawatts of electricity.
The mammoth Meta complex will need 1 gigawatt of electricity, almost equal to the generation capacity of EPE's largest power plant, the Newman Generating Station, just down the road from the Meta site.
EPE will use electricity from its existing power sources to supply 220 megawatts to the Meta complex, then supplement it with the McCloud facility, and will eventually need additional power sources for the facility.
The McCloud facility is expected to take about 10 months to build, an unprecedentedly short timetable for an EPE power plant. EPE has never used this type of power plant. Its other power plants are traditional plants powered by large natural gas turbines and steam.
Vic Kolenc may be reached at 915-546-6421;vkolenc@elpasotimes.com; @vickolenc on X, and @vkolenc.bsky.socialon Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Judges back Meta $552M power plant if EP Electric customers don't pay
