TX SB 6 / PUCT 25.194 / 75 MW / ERCOT Batch Zero

Plain-English framing: SB 6 is the Texas legislature's response to ERCOT receiving 225 new large-load interconnection requests in 2025 (vs. 152 total from 2022-2024) and tracking ~238.6 GW of large-load requests as of December 2025. The law says: any new load 75 MW or larger has to pay big non-refundable application fees, post substantial financial collateral, prove site control, and disclose related projects up front — the goal is to filter out speculative interconnection requests from real, financed projects. The PUCT's draft rule (16 TAC §25.194) is the implementing regulation that turns the statute into enforceable specifics: which fees, which collateral amounts, which disclosures, which timelines. The $50,000-$100,000 per MW non-refundable fee is the most economically significant number — for a 500 MW data center, that's $25M-$50M in non-refundable application costs just to start the interconnection process. The ERCOT Batch Zero PCLR framework (separate from SB 6) is the operational mechanism — the framework that lets a fast-track interconnection request access provisional load before all transmission upgrades are complete. Together, SB 6 financial gates + ERCOT Batch Zero fast track = the new Texas interconnection regime. Sources: Perkins Coie 'SB 6 Implementation Shaping Data Center Future in Texas'; Greenberg Traurig 'Texas Senate Bill 6 Update: What Data Centers and Large Load Customers Should Know About Proposed Interconnection Standards'; Bracewell 'Texas Senate Bill 6 Ushers in Major Overhaul of Large Load Interconnection and Grid Access Rules'; EPE Consulting 'New Pathway and Deadlines in ERCOT's Batch Zero: PCLR'; Seyfarth Shaw 'ERCOT's Batch Zero Proposal and What It Means for Large-Load Projects in Texas'.

Primary source · PUCT / Perkins Coie / Greenberg Traurig / Bracewell / EPE Consulting / Seyfarth Shaw ↗