CITY OF KATY, Texas (Covering Katy News) — The Texas Public Utility Commission is expected to take up the case of Ochoa Energy Storage's application to build a 500-megawatt Battery Energy Storage System facility in Katy in August, Katy City Attorney Bridgette Biget said Monday.
The commission will review the case at its Austin headquarters.
Ochoa applied to build the facility, known as BESS, at 27501 Highway Blvd. But in October 2024, the Katy City Council rejected a special use permit needed under local law. Council members said they had concerns about safety and the facility's location near Katy High School and residential areas.
Ochoa is asking state regulators for a declaratory order against the city that would allow the project to move forward despite this special use permit rejection by the Katy City Council.
Ochoa seeks to build facility on west side
Ochoa's proposed facility was designed to support the Texas electric grid and help prevent power outages, as happened during Winter Storm Uri in February 2021.
The company said the facility would take less than 12 acres on a 24-acre, privately owned site at the southwest corner of Cane Island Parkway and Highway Boulevard. The proposed site, which would use lithium-ion batteries, would be Highway Boulevard from an electrical substation, next to the West Ten Industrial Business Park and alongside a major electrical corridor serving Katy-area residents.
Ochoa, which is headquartered in Irving, said on its website that the facility would be on privately owned land "directly next to an electrical substation and a major electrical corridor serving the residents of the Katy area." The company said it will use landscaping to minimize visual impact of the equipment.
Company files request for declaratory order from commission
After the city rejected the special use permit, Ochoa filed a request with the commission, which regulates electricity, water and telecommunication in Texas.
The city has filed a legal response and Biget said more filings are expected before the commission reviews the case. Biget said the city is working with Lloyd Gosselink Rochelle and Townsend, an Austin-based firm that specializes in utilities law.