Southwestern Electric Power (SWEPCO), a subsidiary of the US power utility American Electric Power (AEP), has failed to secure approval from the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) regarding the US$4.5bn Wind Catcher project, on grounds that the project does not offer sufficient benefits for Texas's ratepayers with its current structure. Texas' PUC estimates that it would will put an undue burden on SWEPCO’s Texas ratepayers. The project, which already secured approval from Arkansas and Louisiana's regulators, is now at risk.
Wind Catcher is a 2,000 MW wind project currently under construction in Cimarron and Texas counties in the Oklahoma panhandle (United States). It is developed by Invenergy and will be sold to SWEPCO and Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) at completion, which is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2020. SWEPCO will own 70% of the project, while PSO will own the remaining 30% interest. The project would be connected to the Texan grid via a 563-km power transmission line, which will transmit the producer power to AEP customers in Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma.
AEP plans to add 3,065 MW of solar and 5,295 MW of wind power capacity by 2030 and the largest planned renewable energy investment (US$4.5bn) will be dedicated to Wind Catcher.