LUBBOCK, Texas — Xcel Energy on Friday announced a proposed $16 million refund tied in part to the new Hale Win Project near Plainview. Xcel said Hale Wind started commercial operations on Friday.
Xcel Energy filed the proposal with the Public Utility Commission of Texas. If approved, a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month would receive a one-time credit of $14.53, Xcel said.
“The refund will be based on the amount of electricity a customer uses in September and could be spread over two months depending upon a customer’s billing cycle,” Xcel said.
In addition, lower natural gas costs for Xcel’s generating stations will mean nearly 5 percent lower residential bills starting in July, Xcel said.
The Hale Wind Project has 239 turbines that generate enough electricity to power 184,000 typical homes in the region, Xcel said. Thanks in part to a federal tax credit for wind energy, the Hale Wind Project is the “least expensive generating resource in Xcel Energy’s Texas-New Mexico generating fleet.”
The proposed refund is only for Xcel customers. Cities and rural cooperatives that purchase wholesale power are handled separately and are not part of this proposed refund.