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Power Company to Invest in West Texas Solar Energy

Andreas Demmelbauer
/
Texas Tribune

the biggest power company in Texas has plans to harness sunshine. Luminant, a Dallas-based company, announced Tuesday that it would tap 116 megawatts of West Texas solar energy. That’s enough to power almost 60 thousand homes, reports The Texas Tribune.

This is just one more sign that solar power is gaining ground in the Lone Star State. Texas leads the nation in solar energy potential because of its size and plentiful sunshine. But the solar industry has struggled to gain a foothold in the state. That’s because Texas policymakers have provided fewer incentives to solar companies than other states. But all that appears to be changing; Texas’s annual solar output has increased almost sixfold in the last five years.

More than 70 percent of Luminant’s power currently comes from coal.