LCRA wonders aloud about Fayette’s future

Lower Colorado River Authority General Manager Phil Wilson mentioned during a meeting of the LCRA Planning and Public Policy Committee on Wednesday that he is interested in the future of Austin Energy’s stake in the Fayette Power Project. “What’s that going to look like?” he asked. Noting that Austin has a new City Council, he added, “There’s value there for us to work with them and have a conversation around the future of that facility.” Though the LCRA manages Fayette, it evenly shares ownership of two of the plant’s three coal-fired generation units with Austin Energy. Last December, the previous Council adopted the Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan with goals to 2025. It says that “Austin Energy will explore negotiation with LCRA for control of one unit to chart a path toward an early retirement of Austin Energy’s share of Fayette starting in 2022.” The current Council has not taken any further action on the plan.

Whisper has been updated to reflect the fact that LCRA and Austin Energy share management of just two of the three Fayette units, not all three as was originally stated.