PUCT Jun 18 9:30 AM Travis Bldg / Batch Zero PGRR145 final approval / PCLR window opens

Plain-English framing for an outsider. The PUCT (Public Utility Commission of Texas) is the appointed state regulator that governs ERCOT (the Texas grid operator). 'Batch Zero' is the new procedure for how very large new loads — primarily data centers above 75 MW — get added to the ERCOT interconnection queue. The current process, in place since the 2010s, was designed for industrial customers in the 5-50 MW range; the new procedure restructures eligibility, year-by-year deliverability assessment, and the 'BYOG' (bring-your-own-generation) and 'CLR' (controllable load resource) options for sites that can curtail demand. Why a single PUCT meeting matters. The ERCOT process has three governance layers: TAC (Technical Advisory Committee), the ERCOT Board, and then PUCT. The first two endorsed the framework in late May / early June; June 18 is the third and final layer. Once PUCT approves, the PGRR (Protocol Revision Request) becomes effective and the PCLR (Provisional Controllable Load Resource) election window opens — a developer with a site already in the queue has until July 24 to formally declare PCLR status, which lets them participate in the new framework. After July 24, the PCLR election closes and developers default to standard controllable-load treatment. What could change on the floor. Two things to watch: (1) whether the PUCT modifies the deliverability-assessment methodology between board approval and PUCT vote — staff briefings since June 1 have signaled possible tweaks to how 'year-6 deliverability' is calculated, which materially affects whether a 2030-COD site is treated as in-queue or queued-with-conditions; (2) whether the PUCT explicitly references Governor Abbott's June 10 directive (the cost-allocation memo due July 17) — if PUCT cross-references the directive in its order, it strengthens the legal hook for whatever PUCT proposes in the July 17 memo.

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