Proposed Texas high-speed Houston-Dallas rail lands $500K in federal funds

fresh funds

Texas high-speed bullet train has some fresh financial fuel. Photo of the N700 courtesy of © JR Central

Amtrak and its partners will receive more than $2.1 billion in a federal program to improve existing routes and expand Amtrak service across the U.S.

That includes $500,000 from the Federal Railroad Administration awarded to the long-in-the-works high-speed rail project between Houston and Dallas, as well as another $500,000 awarded to the I-20 Corridor Long-Distance Passenger Rail Project.

The funding is via the newly-passed Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act and includes multiple grants that will go to Amtrak and partners. This includes:

$108.5 million to Amtrak for station and service upgrades;
$2 billion to Amtrak partners in North Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maine for infrastructure upgrades
$34.5 million to 39 states and localities for planning and development of 69 new and improved intercity passenger rail corridors

These grants were awarded through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program for projects located across the National Network, as well as the Corridor Identification and Development Program (Corridor ID).

FRA Administrator Amit Bose says in a statement that these will be "transformative rail projects" that will provide climate-friendly alternatives to congested roads and airports.

“Today’s investments in passenger rail nationwide, made possible by the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, are another step forward as we expand and modernize our country’s rail network, providing more Americans the world-class passenger rail they need and deserve," Bose says.

Amtrak was awarded funding on a variety of projects, including four Corridor programs, designed to create a pipeline of intercity passenger rail projects.

Those include:

Texas High-Speed Rail Corridor. This proposed corridor would connect Houston and Dallas, Texas, with a new, dedicated and grade separated high-speed passenger rail service. This would provide new service on a new alignment, with station stops in Dallas, Brazos Valley and Houston.
Long Island Northeast Regional Extension. This proposed corridor would extend three existing daily Northeast Regional round trips between Washington, DC and New York City east to Ronkonkoma, NY, with stops at Jamaica (Queens, NY) and Hicksville, NY. This would entail track, station and infrastructure upgrades to accommodate these trains and better integrate Amtrak service with Long Island Rail Road commuter service.
Daily Cardinal Service. This proposed corridor would increase Cardinal service to operate daily, versus three days per week currently. This route operates between New York City and Chicago via Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, DC, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana.
Daily Sunset Limited Service. This proposed corridor would increase Sunset Limited service to operate daily, versus three days per week currently. This route operates between Los Angeles and New Orleans via Houston, San Antonio and El Paso, Texas; Tucson, Ariz.; and other communities.

The release does not say exactly how the $500,000 will be used. According to TxDOT, the current estimate for construction of track between Houston and Dallas is approximately $16 billion.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

The high-speed train project, which is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 100,000 tons per year, is back on track. Photo courtesy of JR Central

Houston-Dallas bullet train gets back on the rails, races greener Texas travel

speeding back

In the latest chapter in the saga of the high-speed bullet train between Houston and Dallas, Amtrak is now involved.

According to a press release, Texas Central Partners and Amtrak are exploring a partnership to work together on the proposed Dallas-Houston high-speed rail project that's been under consideration for more than a decade.

Amtrak has cooperated with Texas Central on various initiatives since 2016 and the two entities are now evaluating a potential partnership to determine the line's viability.

“If we are going to add more high-speed rail to this country, the Dallas to Houston Corridor is a compelling proposition and offers great potential,” says Amtrak senior VP of High-Speed Rail Development Programs Andy Byford. “We believe many of the country's biggest and fastest-growing metropolitan areas, like Houston and Dallas, deserve more high quality high-speed, intercity rail service, and we are proud to bring our experience to evaluate this potential project and explore opportunities with Texas Central so the state can meet its full transportation needs.”

The route being proposed would span approximately 240 miles, going at 250 mph, resulting in a trip that would take less than 90 minutes between the two cities.

Texas Central has been working towards getting a train rolling since 2013, including lining up a potential builder in 2021. But the project has had pushback from Texas politicians and landowners along the route; a lawsuit against the project was filed by six rural counties in 2021, and the Texas Legislature passed a law prohibiting the state from spending any funds on the project.

Facing a seeming dead end, Texas Central CEO Carlos Aguilar and its board members resigned in June 2022; Michael Bui, a consultant, has been serving as CEO since then.

Texas Central and Amtrak have submitted applications to several federal programs in connection with further study and design work, including the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure Safety and Improvements (CRISI) grant program, the Corridor Identification and Development program, and the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail (FSP-National) grant program.

Amtrak previously entered into an agreement with Texas Central to provide through-ticketing using the Amtrak reservation system and other support services for the planned high-speed rail line.

"This high-speed train, using advanced, proven Shinkansen technology, has the opportunity to revolutionize rail travel in the southern U.S., and we believe Amtrak could be the perfect partner to help us achieve that,” says Bui in a statement.

Despite its detractors, the project is forecast to provide social, environmental, employment and economic benefits including reducing greenhouse gas emissions by more than 100,000 tons per year, saving 65 million gallons of fuel and removing 12,500 cars per day from I-45.

The release from Amtrak has statements from both Dallas Mayor Eric L. Johnson and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who calls the collaboration between Texas Central and Amtrak "an important milestone for the City of Houston and this project."

Byford joined Amtrak in April 2023 to begin developing a team focused on high-speed opportunities throughout the U.S. In his newly created role, he will develop and lead the execution of Amtrak’s long-term strategy for high-speed rail throughout the country, including the extension of the Crescent from Mississippi through Louisiana and Texas; Kansas DOT’s Heartland Flyer Extension Corridor Identification and Development (Corridor ID) connecting Wichita to Oklahoma and Texas, and TxDOT’s applications for the Texas Triangle (Houston — Dallas – Fort Worth – San Antonio) routes.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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ENGIE strikes clean energy deal with Houston biomanufacturer

energy match

ENGIE North America has signed an agreement with Aker BioMarine to supply around-the-clock, Texas-sourced clean energy to the Norwegian company's Houston manufacturing facility.

The deal is through ENGIE's 24/7 offering, which allows users to "match electricity consumption with local renewable generation on an hourly basis," rather than annual renewable energy matching, according to a news release.

Houston-based ENGIE NA will match 90% of Aker BioMarine's hourly electricity consumption at its Houston facility through renewable energy certificates that link electricity consumed to clean power generated. The renewable energy will be sourced largely from ENGIE's Impact Solar Project in Lamar County, Texas.

“Working with companies that have made sustainability a core part of their strategy is essential to delivering meaningful progress,” Taymur Bunkheila, regional VP and retail supply lead for ENGIE’s U.S. 24/7 product, said in the release. “By aligning energy solutions with operational needs, we can help organizations improve transparency, strengthen accountability, and deliver measurable outcomes. This agreement demonstrates how companies can take practical steps today while building toward long-term sustainability objectives.”

Aker BioMarine, which develops sustainable marine-based ingredients, processes the majority of its krill and algae products at its Houston facility. The company says the deal with ENGIE marks an important step in reducing the environmental footprint of its operations.

“Through this agreement, we expect to reduce our Scope 2 emissions, marking an important milestone in our broader sustainability journey,” Matts Johansen, CEO at Aker BioMarine, added in the release. “ENGIE has delivered an affordable, innovative and transparent solution that allows us to match our electricity consumption for our Houston manufacturing facility with renewable power generation. The transparent data ENGIE provides strengthens our climate reporting while helping us continue delivering high-quality products with a lower environmental footprint."

ENGIE has more than 11 gigawatts of renewable energy projects in operation or under construction in the U.S. and Canada. The company is targeting 95 gigawatts by 2030

ExxonMobil announces date to move legal headquarters to Texas

save the date

Energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp. has set a date to move its legal headquarters to Texas.

The Spring-based company announced this week that the redomiciliation from New Jersey to Texas is expected to be effective July 1. Exxon's board of directors unanimously recommended redomiciling in the Lone Star State in March, and shareholders approved the move to Texas at the company’s annual meeting in May.

As part of the move, ExxonMobil Holdings Corp. will replace Exxon Mobil Corp. of New Jersey and become the publicly traded parent company. Exxon reports that its shares will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “XOM,” and that shareholders do not need to take action.

At the time of the recommendation, Exxon said the move would not affect business operations, management, strategy, assets or employee locations.

Exxon Chairman and CEO Darren Woods added that the redomiciliation was in part due to Texas' business-friendly environment and policies.

"Over the past several years, Texas has made a noticeable effort to embrace the business community. In doing so, it has created a policy and regulatory environment that can allow the company to maximize shareholder value,” Woods said in a news release. "Aligning our legal home with our operating home, in a state that understands our business and has a stake in the company’s success, is important.”

The Associated Press reports that about 30 percent of Exxon's employees work in Texas. Exxon's legal headquarters has been based in New Jersey since 1882, when it was Standard Oil Company.

Exxon moved its operational headquarters from Irving, Texas, to the Houston area in 2023.

Exxon was the highest-ranking Houston-area company on this year's Fortune 500 list, coming in at No. 9. Houston tied with Chicago for the second-most Fortune 500 headquarters on this year's list, with Texas leading the nation for the most Fortune 500 headquarters (57).

“Texas is the undisputed headquarters of headquarters,” Gov. Greg Abbott said in a news release. “The world’s leading businesses invest with confidence in Texas because of our welcoming business climate, predictable regulatory environment, and skilled and growing workforce. People and businesses are choosing Texas because Texas works.”

Houston startups named to World Economic Forum cohort for carbon removal, clean technologies

top honor

Two Houston-based startups have been selected to join the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers community.

The two-year program aims to help mission-driven, early-stage start-ups scale their innovations through multi-stakeholder initiatives, co-creating partnerships and other gatherings for community members. One-hundred startups are selected each year from around the globe, this year hailing from 23 countries and working in AI, energy, space, biotech markets and more.

Cleantech startup Vaulted Deep was one of 11 energy and climate companies to be named to the cohort. Julia Reichelstein and Omar Abou-Sayed founded the company in 2023. Its technology injects excess organic waste underground to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Last year, Vaulted Deep inked a 12-year deal with Microsoft to remove up to 4.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the environment.

The startup has earned several accolades in recent years, including a No. 3 spot on Fast Company’s list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2026. It was also recently named to market intelligence and advisory firm Cleantech Group's annual Global Cleantech 100 list for a second year in a row.

"Waste management is one of the world's great invisible infrastructure systems ... The need for new infrastructure is growing as disposal challenges become more complex and regulations evolve. Vaulted is building the first new disposal pathway for organic waste in decades by putting it deep underground, permanently," the company shared in a LinkedIn post. "This year, we're joining the World Economic Forum's 2026 Tech Pioneers alongside innovators working on the many interconnected challenges shaping our future."

Houston-based Venus Aerospace was also selected to join the cohort, along with six other spacetech companies. The company was founded in 2020 by Sassie and Andrew Duggleby.

The startup specializes in next-generation rocket engine propulsion as a cleaner alternative to traditional combustion engines. The company's rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE) burns fuel more efficiently and completed a successful high-thrust test flight last year. Venus says it’s the only company in the world that makes a flight-proven, high-thrust RDRE with a “clear path to scaled production.”

"Frontier technologies matter most when they expand what people, industries, and nations can do," Sassie Duggleby, co-founder and CEO of Venus, said in a news release. "For Venus, RDRE does not just represent a more efficient engine. It is a foundation for faster movement, more capable space systems, and new forms of connectivity across the planet. Being named a Technology Pioneer validates the potential of this technology to help shape a future where distance is less limiting."

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