Sec. 35.036. DISTRIBUTED NATURAL GAS GENERATION FACILITIES

(a) A person who owns or operates a distributed natural gas generation facility may sell electric power generated by the facility. The electric utility, electric cooperative, or retail electric provider that provides retail electricity service to the facility may purchase electric power tendered to it by the owner or operator of the facility at a value agreed to by the electric utility, electric cooperative, or retail electric provider and the owner or operator of the facility. The value of the electric power may be based wholly or partly on the clearing price of energy at the time of day and at the location at which the electric power is made available to the electric grid.

(b) At the request of the owner or operator of the distributed natural gas generation facility, the electric utility or electric cooperative shall allow the owner or operator of the facility to use transmission and distribution facilities to transmit the electric power to another entity that is acceptable to the owner or operator in accordance with commission rules or a tariff approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

(c) Subject to Subsections (e) and (f), if the owner or operator of a distributed natural gas generation facility requests to be interconnected to an electric utility or electric cooperative that does not have a transmission tariff approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the electric utility or electric cooperative may recover from the owner or operator of the facility the reasonable costs of interconnecting the facility with the electric utility or electric cooperative that are necessary for and directly attributable to the interconnection of the facility.

(d) Subject to Subsections (e) and (f), an electric utility or electric cooperative may recover from the owner or operator of a distributed natural gas generation facility the reasonable costs of electric facility upgrades and improvements if:

(1) the rated capacity of the distributed natural gas generation facility is greater than the rated capacity of the electric utility or electric cooperative; and

(2) the costs are necessary for and directly attributable to accommodating the distributed natural gas generation facility's capacity.

(e) An electric utility or electric cooperative may recover costs under Subsection (c) or (d) only if:

(1) the electric utility or electric cooperative provides a written good faith cost estimate to the owner or operator of the distributed natural gas generation facility; and

(2) the owner or operator of the distributed natural gas generation facility agrees in writing to pay the reasonable and necessary costs of interconnection or capacity accommodation requested by the owner or operator and described in the estimate before the electric utility or electric cooperative incurs the costs.

(f) If an electric utility or electric cooperative seeks to recover from the owner or operator of a distributed natural gas generation facility an amount that exceeds the amount in the estimate provided under Subsection (e) by more than five percent, the commission shall resolve the dispute at the request of the owner or operator of the facility.

(g) A distributed natural gas generation facility must comply with emissions limitations established by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for a standard emissions permit for an electric generation facility unit installed after January 1, 1995.

(h) This section does not require an electric cooperative to transmit electricity to a retail point of delivery in the certificated service area of the electric cooperative if the electric cooperative has not adopted customer choice.

Added by Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 890 , Sec. 3, eff. September 1, 2011.