An effort to build a $473 million gas-powered electric plant in El Paso has sparked opposition from some community activists who say that the new facility may cause air pollution while also pushing up utility rates.
Earlier this month, El Paso Electric said it wanted to build what would be a 366-megawatt plant at a 31-acre site on the northeast side of the city. To be built adjacent to the coming 1-gigawatt Meta Platform data center, the plant would be geared for serving that center.
Planned for construction later this year, with a rough completion date of sometime in 2027, the plant would be dedicated to serving the $1.5 billion Meta facility for five years.
After that five-year period the new El Paso Electric plant would be connected to the company’s larger transmission system.
In filings with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, it is stated that Meta will be solely responsible for all associated costs related to the new gas plant.
In the wake of the announcement of the new El Paso Electric plant, a group called the Sembrando Esperanza Coalition has announced its determination to stop the project.
“We were not told that El Paso Electric would be building a power plant powered by fossil fuels,” Veronica Carbajal, an organizer with the group, has told the publication Inside Climate News.
Last year the group announced its opposition to the Meta data center itself, noting that such facilities “consume large amounts of water, create more water, air, and noise pollution, and raise utilities for residents.”
Another organization, the Amanecer People’s Project, has said that the proposed El Paso Electric gas plant runs contrary to the company’s earlier stated sustainability goals.
Public input on the project is expected to be registered in the weeks ahead as the proposal for the plant is reviewed by both the state’s Public Utility Commission as well as the Texas Public Utility Commission.
January 29, 2026
By Garry Boulard
