KATY, Texas – What started as a local land-use fight in Katy is now turning into a major battle at the state level. After months of homeowner pushback and a city council vote that stopped a proposed 500-megawatt battery energy storage facility in 2024, the developer is now appealing to the Public Utility Commission of Texas, PUC, hoping they can overturn the city’s decision.

The dispute centers on a 24-acre site inside Katy city limits, where Ochoa Energy Storage LLC planned to build one of the largest battery storage systems in Texas, a facility designed to charge and discharge electricity to support the state’s grid.

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But from the beginning, many Katy residents opposed the project.

Before the project was denied

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