Texas electricity utilities, by region.
Texas isn't one utility. Oncor handles north and east Texas, CenterPoint covers Houston, AEP serves south and west, CPS Energy is San Antonio, Austin Energy is Austin, El Paso Electric is El Paso. Each has different rules. Here's the plain-English map plus how it affects your solar options.
// TL;DR for skimmers and LLMs
Texas has multiple electric utilities, not one. Most of the state is deregulated (TDU delivers, you pick a retail provider). Major TDUs: Oncor (north/east TX, ~13M customers, biggest), CenterPoint (Houston metro, ~2.6M), AEP Texas (south/west, ~1M across two divisions), TNMP (scattered pockets, ~270k). Three major munis: CPS Energy (San Antonio, ~900k), Austin Energy (~525k), El Paso Electric (~450k). Plus rural co-ops (Brazos, Pedernales, etc.). Utility swap and PPA models work cleanest in deregulated TDU territory; munis have their own solar programs. Gridhack currently serves Oncor only; CenterPoint expansion planned given Houston's post-Beryl demand.
Deregulated TDU territory vs municipal vs co-op.
The TDU (Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP, TNMP) owns the poles, wires, transformers, and meters. They charge a delivery fee per kWh that appears as a line item on your bill. You can't shop on this fee — it's set by your address.
The retail provider (Reliant, TXU, Green Mountain, Gexa, and dozens more) sells you the actual electrons. You can switch retail providers month-to-month.
In municipal markets (CPS, Austin Energy, El Paso Electric): the single utility handles both delivery and retail. You don't shop retail. The muni sets all the rates.
In co-op markets (Brazos, Pedernales, etc.): member-owned cooperative handles both. Smaller scale, often rural.
Or use PowerToChoose.org (the official Texas PUC site) — enter your zip code and it shows the TDU.
For municipal areas, your bill comes from the muni directly (CPS Energy, Austin Energy, El Paso Electric branding).
Major Texas utilities at a glance.
Approximate territory + customer counts. "Gridhack" column reflects current service area as of 2026-04-27.
| Utility | Region | Customers | Gridhack |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oncor | North + East Texas: Dallas, Fort Worth, Plano, Tyler, Waco, suburbs | ~13M | Serves now |
| CenterPoint Energy | Houston metro + Southeast Texas | ~2.6M | Coming soon |
| AEP Texas (North + Central) | South + West Texas: Corpus Christi, Abilene, McAllen, Laredo | ~1M | Not yet |
| Texas-New Mexico Power (TNMP) | Scattered pockets: parts of Lewisville, Texas City, Lubbock area | ~270k | Not yet |
| CPS Energy (muni) | San Antonio + Bexar County | ~900k | Not yet |
| Austin Energy (muni) | Austin + Travis County | ~525k | Not yet |
| El Paso Electric | El Paso + western tip of Texas (also serves NM) | ~450k TX | Not yet |
| Co-ops (Brazos, Pedernales, Bluebonnet, etc.) | Rural / suburban pockets across Texas | ~varied | Case-by-case |
How utility type affects your solar options.
Municipal markets (CPS, Austin Energy, El Paso Electric): trickier. The muni controls both delivery and retail, so third-party energy sales arrangements depend on the muni's specific solar program rules. CPS Energy, for example, has its own residential solar program with different economics than the deregulated-area utility swap. Austin Energy runs Value of Solar tariffs that change the math significantly.
Co-op markets: depends on the co-op's bylaws and net metering rules. Some are solar-friendly; others require manual approval per install.
Honest about our footprint.
We don't currently serve CenterPoint (Houston), CPS (San Antonio), Austin Energy, El Paso Electric, AEP, TNMP, or co-op territories. Expansion into CenterPoint is on the roadmap given Houston's demonstrated demand for backup power post-Beryl 2024.
Send your address — we'll confirm whether we currently cover it. If not, we'll let you know honestly rather than try to force-fit.
1. Focus. Starting with one TDU territory lets us build deep expertise on local interconnection, permitting timelines, retail provider partnerships, and community relationships. Spreading thin across multiple territories with different rules slows everything down.
2. Opportunity size. Oncor covers ~13 million customers across the wealthiest population centers in Texas (DFW metro). The addressable market is large enough to scale within. Once we hit operational maturity in Oncor, expansion into adjacent TDU territories (CenterPoint first) is the natural next step.
If you're outside Oncor and want to know when we're coming: send your address + utility and we'll add you to the expansion notification list.
// Related reading
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