Wind Energy in Texas: The Largest Wind Producer in the US

Texas: The Wind Energy Capital

If Texas were its own country, it would rank among the top wind energy producers in the world. The state has over 40 gigawatts of installed wind capacity, more than the next three US states combined. That is enough to power millions of homes when the wind is blowing strong.

This did not happen by accident. Texas has ideal geography — vast stretches of flat land in West Texas and the Panhandle where wind blows consistently — combined with a deregulated market that made it financially attractive for developers to build wind farms.

How Wind Affects Your Electricity Prices

Here is something most Texans don’t realize: wind energy is one of the reasons electricity prices in Texas are as competitive as they are. Wind has zero fuel cost. Once a turbine is built, the wind that spins it is free. When wind production is high, it floods the wholesale market with cheap electricity, pushing prices down for everyone.

You can see this play out in real time. On breezy spring nights, wholesale electricity prices in ERCOT sometimes drop to zero or even go negative, meaning generators are essentially paying the grid to take their power. Retail providers that buy wholesale power during these windows can pass those savings along.

On the flip side, during hot summer afternoons when air conditioners are running full blast and the wind tends to die down, prices spike. This is why your electricity bill in August looks nothing like your bill in April.

The CREZ Lines That Changed Everything

The biggest challenge with Texas wind energy was always geography. The wind blows hardest hundreds of miles from where people live. For years, wind farms in West Texas were limited by the transmission capacity to move their power east.

In 2009, Texas began building the Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ) transmission network — roughly 3,600 miles of high-voltage lines connecting West Texas wind to the major metro areas. Completed in 2014, the CREZ lines roughly doubled the amount of wind power the grid could handle and are widely considered one of the most successful renewable energy infrastructure projects in US history.

Wind-Sourced Electricity Plans

If you want your electricity to come from wind, several Texas providers offer wind-sourced plans. These plans work by matching the electricity you draw from the grid with Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) generated by wind farms.

Some providers, like Green Mountain Energy, have long histories of offering renewable plans. Newer entrants like Chariot Energy and Rhythm Energy also offer plans tied to wind and other renewable sources, often at rates competitive with conventional plans.

When comparing wind plans, pay attention to whether the provider is sourcing RECs from Texas-based wind farms or purchasing them from out-of-state projects. Texas-based RECs mean the wind generation is happening on the same grid you are connected to.

Wind and Solar: Better Together

Texas is increasingly benefiting from the natural partnership between wind and solar. Solar panels produce the most electricity during sunny afternoons, while wind turbines tend to generate more at night and during cooler months. Together, they cover more hours of the day and more seasons of the year, smoothing out the variability of either source on its own. This combination is one reason Texas continues to see competitive electricity prices despite growing demand.