October 3, 2023

Texas Comptroller Visits Montgomery County Power Station for Good for Texas Tour: Energy Edition

(WILLIS) — On his Good for Texas Tour: Energy Edition, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today visited the Montgomery County Power Station, a state-of-the-art natural gas power plant that provides energy to more than 500,000 residents.

“If Texas were a country, it would be the third-largest natural gas producer in the world,” Hegar said. “Nearly a fourth of domestic natural gas reserves and about 30 of the nation’s 100 largest natural gas fields are in Texas. This state has long been a leader in the energy industry; its abundance of fossil fuels makes Texas a net exporter of energy, making significant contributions not only to the state economy but also to the U.S. economy and our overall national security and energy independence. 

“The Montgomery County Power Station utilizes technology that provides efficient, dispatchable power, with $2.1 billion in investment from its parent company, Entergy Texas, being used for infrastructure upgrades, including transmission and distribution upgrades. The plain truth is Texas needs natural-gas-fueled electric generation to ensure we have a diverse portfolio of energy sources that can meet the needs of our growing state regardless of weather conditions or the time of day.” 

During his Good for Texas Tour: Energy Edition, Hegar is spotlighting information his office has gathered about Texas’ energy sectors. He is touring some of the state’s key power entities, meeting with company officials and local community members to hear more about the challenges and successes in energy generation, management and planning.

Natural gas provides more than 40 percent of the electric-generating capacity in Texas, making it the largest single source of power in the state. The state’s 176 natural gas-fired power plants play a crucial role in meeting peak electricity demand and ensuring grid reliability. 

Employment in the natural gas industry in Texas is significant, with thousands of jobs created in drilling, fuel production, electric power generation and related sectors. According to the 2023 U.S. Energy and Employment Report, in 2022 the natural gas industry was responsible for 100,972 jobs in fuel employment across the state. This accounts for more than a third of all fuel employment in the state. Texas also had 8,912 employees from the natural gas industry working in electric power generation, which puts it third behind wind and solar energy.  

The Montgomery County Power Station came online in 2021 and has an installed capacity of 993 megawatts.  

For more information on the tour, including in-depth data on Texas energy, visit the Comptroller's website.