News Release > Entergy Texas receives approval on backup generation program

Entergy Texas receives approval on backup generation program

02/20/2025

Company partners with customers on solutions to provide a more reliable and resilient energy future for Southeast Texas 

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – In today’s world, electricity is an essential part of our everyday life. People rely on energy to help power everything from electronics and appliances to public transportation and infrastructure. A reliable and resilient power grid is critical to support the rapidly growing energy demand we’re experiencing and strengthening the power grid requires a comprehensive approach. 

As part of that approach, the Public Utility Commission of Texas unanimously approved Entergy Texas’ Power Through program on February 20, marking a key milestone in the company’s ongoing efforts to provide more reliable and resilient power to Southeast Texas. Power Through aims to deliver whole-facility backup generation to customer locations at a much lower cost than what it would typically be if a customer were to build a backup solution of their own. Entergy Texas provides maintenance to the units at no additional cost to the facility––making it easy for customers to literally “power through” any outage. 

“Power Through is another step in our ongoing efforts to enhance grid reliability for our customers,” said Stuart Barrett, vice president of customer service for Entergy Texas. “This program provides direct benefits to our communities, reinforcing our commitment to delivering innovative, reliable, and affordable energy solutions.” 

The benefits of the Power Through program are two-fold:

• Generators that are installed and deployed as part of the program can provide backup power to essential community facilities like grocery stores, hospitals and nursing homes when outages occur following hurricanes or other extreme weather events.
• When the generators are not being used to provide host facilities backup power due to an outage, they can be used to provide additional power to the grid in times of high demand that is typically seen during the summer or winter months, benefiting all Entergy Texas customers. 

While the PUCT’s approval formally establishes Power Through as an ongoing program, Entergy Texas has already successfully deployed six pilot units that have provided critical backup power during major storms, including Hurricane Laura and Winter Storms Uri and Elliott. These pilot projects, installed at five H-E-B grocery stores and one Lone Star College system campus, have demonstrated the program’s effectiveness in protecting essential services and supporting communities during power outages. 

An Entergy Texas Power Through pilot generator provides backup power at a Lone Star College system campus, keeping operations running during outages caused by severe weather conditions. 

“The Power Through program is a significant benefit to our college as it provides a state-of-the-art backup generator in times of need––like severe weather events,” said Dr. Kristy Vienne, vice chancellor for finance and administration and CFO for Lone Star College system. “By partnering with Entergy Texas and signing up for the company’s Power Through program, we can continue to serve the needs of our students and our community.” 

“The approval of Entergy Texas’ Power Through program will improve the reliability of the electric service to our facilities, which is critical to H-E-B’s mission to serve our communities in times of need,” said George Presses, group vice president of fuel and energy for H-E-B.  

Innovative solutions like Power Through are a key component of Entergy Texas’ Southeast Texas Energy Plan, also known as the STEP Ahead plan. By integrating on-site power generation and other forward-thinking energy solutions, Entergy Texas is taking proactive steps to strengthen the Southeast Texas power grid, support local businesses, and provide reliable power to communities when they need it most. 

For more information on the Power Through program, visit entergy.com/powerthrough.