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Eyeing demand growth, ERCOT calls for energy investments across Texas

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ERCOT now estimates an extra 40,000 megawatts of growth in demand for electricity by 2030 compared with last year’s outlook. Photo via Getty Images

With the Electric Reliability Council of Texas forecasting a big spike in demand for electricity over the next five to seven years, the operator of Texas’ massive power grid is embracing changes that it says will yield a “tremendous opportunity” for energy investments across the state.

The council, known as ERCOT, now estimates an extra 40,000 megawatts of growth in demand for electricity by 2030 compared with last year’s outlook. According to ERCOT data, 40,000 megawatts of electricity would power roughly 8 million Texas homes during peak demand.

ERCOT has been under intense scrutiny in the wake of recent summertime and wintertime debacles involving power emergencies or outages. The organization manages 90 percent of Texas’ power supply.

“As a result of Texas’ continued strong economic growth, new load is being added to the ERCOT system faster and in greater amounts than ever before,” Pablo Vegas, president and CEO of ERCOT, says in a news release. “As we develop and implement the tools provided by the prior two [legislative sessions], ERCOT is positioned to better plan for and meet the needs of our incredibly fast-growing state.”

Meeting the increased demand will create opportunities for energy investments in Texas, says ERCOT. These opportunities will undoubtedly lie in traditional energy production as well as in renewable energy segments such as solar, wind, and “green” hydrogen.

Some of the opportunities might be financed, at least in part, by the newly established Texas Energy Fund. The fund, which has been allotted $5 billion for 2025-26, will provide loans and grants for construction, maintenance, modernization, and operation of power-generating facilities in Texas.

ERCOT is also working with partners to develop tools aimed at improving grid reliability and market efficiency.

ERCOT says changes in its operations that’ll be required to fulfill heightened demand for power will position the nonprofit organization “as a significant component of the economic engine driving the national economy.”

ERCOT has made four leadership changes. Photo courtesy of ERCOT

ERCOT makes major leadership changes, names COO

reorganization

Last week, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, announced a reorganization amongst its leadership.

“These changes were designed to harness the collaborative talents and strengths of our experienced team in supporting the delivery of reliable and efficient energy to the millions of Texans that we serve,” Pablo Vegas, ERCOT President and CEO, says in a news release.

Effective September 1, four ERCOT leaders have new titles and positions.

Woody Rickerson has been named to the newly created position of senior vice president and COO of ERCOT. He previously served as vice president of system planning and weatherization. In his new role, he will maintain control over weatherization and planning while adding grid and commercial operations to his responsibilities.

“This new position will leverage Rickerson’s deep operations experience and support ERCOT’s continued investments in grid innovations,” adds Vegas.

Kristi Hobbs, who previously served as vice president of corporate strategy and public utility commission relations, will replace Rickerson as vice president of system planning and weatherization and will report directly to Rickerson. She will oversee transmission planning, generator interconnection activities, modeling, and weatherization in her new role.

ERCOT announced two other appointments:

  • Betty Day, vice president of security and compliance and chief compliance officer, has assumed oversight of business continuity.
  • Rebecca Zerwas will serve as director of state policy and public utility commission relations, board liaison.

“As our industry faces dynamic changes, ERCOT is continuously evolving and making the necessary improvements to the grid to support the needs of a growing population and robust economy," Vegas says. "This reorganization allows us to sharpen our focus on daily operations while implementing our long-term strategic plan."

Images via ERCOT.com

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Local energy innovators recognized at annual Houston Innovation Awards

the big winners

This week, the Houston innovation ecosystem celebrated big wins from the year, and members of the energy transition community were recognized alongside other innovators.

The Houston Innovation Awards honored over 40 finalists across categories, naming the 12 winners and honoring the two Trailblazer Legacy Awards at the event. The event, hosted at TMC Helix Park on November 14 named and celebrated the winners, which included four energy transition innovators.

Here's what energy leaders secured wins during the evening.

Corrolytics is a technology startup founded to solve microbiologically influenced corrosion problems for industrial assets. Co-founder and CEO Anwar Sadek says he's collected over $1 million in dilutive and non-dilutive funding from grants and other opportunities thanks to help from mentors. The company won both the Minority-Founded Business category and the People's Choice: Startup of the Year category.

"As a founder, I am always eager to assist and support fellow entrepreneurs, especially those navigating the unique challenges that come with being a BIPOC founder," he says. "With the guidance of mentors, I learned to master the complexities of the application process for grants and other funding opportunities. In turn, I actively share my experiences with other founders, helping them navigate similar paths."

Founded by CEO Cindy Taff, SageGeosystems is an energy company focused on developing and deploying advanced geothermal technologies to provide reliable power and sustainable energy storage solutions regardless of geography. The company secured the win in the Energy Transition Business category, alongside finalists Amperon, ARIX Technologies, Elementium Materials, InnoVent Renewables, and Tierra Climate.

"Sage Geosystems sets itself apart from competitors with its Geopressured Geothermal Systems, which can be deployed almost anywhere, unlike traditional geothermal technologies that require specific geographic conditions," Taff says. "This flexibility enables Sage to provide a reliable and virtually limitless power supply, making it ideal for energy-intensive applications like data centers."

A finalist in both the Investor of the Year and Ecosystem Builder categories, Juliana Garaizar is the founding partner of Energy Tech Nexus, invests with groups — such as Portfolia, Houston Angel Network, Business Angel Minority Association, and more — locally and beyond.

"I'm a hands on investor," she says. "I offer mentorship and industry and other investor connections. I take advisory roles and board observer seats."

This year, the Houston innovation community suffered the loss of two business leaders who left a significant impact on the ecosystem. Both individuals' careers were recognized with Trailblazer Legacy Awards.

One of the recipients was Scott Gale, executive director of Halliburton Labs, who received the award posthumously. He died on September 24. The award was decided on by the 2024 judges and InnovationMap. Gale was honored alongside Paul Frison, founder of the Houston Technology Center.

“I am immensely proud to honor these two remarkable individuals with the Trailblazer Award this year. It is fitting, as they represent two generations of building Houston’s ecosystem," 2023 Trailblazer Award recipient Brad Burke, managing director of the Rice Alliance and the associate vice president for industry and new ventures within Rice University's Office of Innovation, tells InnovationMap.

"Paul Frison was a pioneering leader who helped establish the Houston Technology Center and fostered the city’s tech ecosystem during the initial technology boom around the year 2000. Scott Gale, through his work at Halliburton Labs over the past five years, has been instrumental in launching Houston’s energy transition ecosystem," he continues. "Both have played pivotal roles in championing technology innovators.”

In honor of his son, Andrew Gale accepted the award with his daughter-in-law, Nicole, during the event.

Trending news: $450M fund closes, virtual power plant planned for Texas, and more in Houston energy

what's trending

Editor's note: From NRG's new virtual power plant plans to Pelican Energy Partners' $450 million fund announcement, these are the top headlines that resonated with EnergyCapital readers on social media and daily newsletter this week.

NRG Energy partners to launch Texas' largest AI-powered virtual power plant

NRG and Renew Home expect the virtual power plant program to arrive for Texas customers in spring of 2025. Photo via Getty Images

NRG Energy is partnering with a virtual power plant company to distribute hundreds of thousands of VPP-enabled smart thermostats by 2035 in an overall effort to improve the Texas grid's resiliency and help households manage and lower their energy costs.

Renew Home will create a nearly 1 gigawatt AI-powered VPP, which will be enabled by Google Cloud technology and be the largest AI-enabled VPP in Texas. NRG and Renew Home expect the VPP program to arrive for Texas customers in spring of 2025. Continue reading.

Houston PE firm unveils oversubscribed $450M fund to advance nuclear power innovation

Pelican Energy Partners has raised more than it intended with its new nuclear-focused fund. Photo via Getty Images

Houston-based private equity firm Pelican Energy Partners has raised a $450 million fund to invest in nuclear energy services and equipment companies.

Pelican had aimed to raise $300 million for Pelican Energy Partners Base Zero LP and had imposed an initial “hard cap” of $400 million. Investors include endowments, foundations, family offices, and pension plans.

As of the fund’s closing date, the fund had wrapped up six investments, with several more deals expected to close by the end of this year. Continue reading.

Houston-area solar farm to light up Texas with clean power for 15,000 homes

Recurrent Energy's Liberty Solar project near Houston is now operational, adding 134 megawatts of clean energy capacity to power 15,000 homes annually in the MISO market. Photo via recurrentenergy.com

A clean energy developer and operator of solar and energy storage assets has announced the completion and commercial operation of a Houston-area farm that will power 15,000 homes a year.

Recurrent Energy's Liberty Solar project outside of Houston has powered on and will expand solar energy capacity in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator market. Recurrent Energy is an Austin-based a subsidiary of Canadian Solar.

“Projects like Liberty Solar are instrumental to meeting the soaring demand for electricity in Texas,” Executive Director of Texas Solar Power Association Mark Stover says in a news release. "We commend Recurrent Energy for pushing through the development process and working with corporate buyers to deliver new, predictable, clean power to the MISO region of Texas.” Continue reading.

Unlocking climate tech’s potential in Houston: What health innovation's rise can teach us

If we can channel the same sense of urgency and public commitment toward climate change as we did for health crises in the past, climate tech could overcome its current obstacles. Photo via Getty Images

Over the past several decades, climate tech has faced numerous challenges, ranging from inconsistent public support to a lack of funding from cautious investors. While grassroots organizations and climate innovators have made notable efforts to address urgent environmental issues, we have yet to see large-scale, lasting impact.

A common tendency is to compare climate tech to the rapid advancements made in digital and software technology, but perhaps a more appropriate parallel is the health tech sector, which encountered many of the same struggles in its early days.

Observing the rise of health tech and the economic and political support it received, we can uncover strategies that could stabilize and propel climate tech forward. Continue reading.

Podcast: How this Houston energy tech startup transforms innovation into scalable success

Through Dsider’s techno-economic analysis platform, Sujatha Kumar is helping startups bridge the critical gap between vision and execution, ensuring they can navigate complex markets with confidence. Photo via LinkedIn

What if the future of clean energy wasn’t just about invention, but execution? For Sujatha Kumar, CEO of Dsider, success in clean tech hinges on more than groundbreaking technology—it’s about empowering founders with the tools to make their innovations viable, scalable, and economically sound.

Through Dsider’s techno-economic analysis (TEA) platform, Kumar is helping startups bridge the critical gap between vision and execution, ensuring they can navigate complex markets with confidence.

In a recent episode of the Energy Tech Startups Podcast, Kumar shared her insights on the growing importance of TEA in the hard tech space. While clean energy innovation promises transformative solutions, the challenge lies in proving both technical feasibility and economic sustainability. Kumar argues that many early-stage founders, especially in fields like carbon capture, microgrids, and renewable energy, lack the necessary financial tools to assess market fit and long-term profitability—a gap Dsider aims to fill. Continue reading.

Pipeline robotics: How this Houston startup is revolutionizing corrosion monitoring

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After working for years in the downstream energy industry where safety and efficiency were top priorities, Dianna Liu thought there was a way technology could make a huge difference.

Despite loving her company and her job, she took a leap of faith to start a robotics company to create technology to more safely and efficiently monitor corrosion in pipelines. ARIX Technologies has developed software and hardware solutions for its customers with pipelines in downstream and beyond.

"Overall, this industry is an industry that really harps on doing things safely, doing things well, and having all the data to make really informed decisions," Liu says on the Houston Innovators Podcast. "Because these are huge companies with huge problems, it takes a lot of time to set up the right systems, adopt new things, and make changes."

But it's an industry Liu knows well, so she founded ARIX in 2017 and created a team of engineers to create the first iteration of the ARIX robot, which was at first made of wood, she says. Now, years later, the much-evolved robot moves up and down the exterior of the pipe, using its technology to scan the interior to evaluate corrosion. The technology works with ARIX's software to provide key data analysis.

With customers across the country and the world, ARIX has a strong foothold in downstream, but has garnered interest from other verticals as well — even working with NASA at one point, Liu says.

"Staying in downstream would be nice and safe for us, but we've been very lucky and have had customers in midstream, upstream, and even outside oil and gas and chemicals," she says. "We've gotten inquiries ranging from cosmetics plants to water or wastewater — essentially anything that's round or a pipe that can corrode, we can help with."

Liu, who goes into detail on the show about how critical establishing a positive company culture has been for ARIX, shares a bit about what it's been like growing her company in Houston.

"Houston being the Energy Capital of the World opens a lot of doors to both customers, investors, and employees in a way that's unparalleled. It is a great place to build a company because of that — you have all this expertise in this city and the surrounding areas that's hard to find elsewhere," she says. "Being such a hub — not only for energy, but in terms transportation — means it's easy for us to get to our customers from around the world."

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This article originally ran on InnovationMap.

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