El Paso Electric

El Paso Electric is a regional electric utility headquartered in El Paso, Texas. The company provides generation, transmission, distribution, and certain wholesale and resale electricity services across a large service territory in the Rio Grande Valley, extending broadly from the Hatch area of New Mexico to Van Horn, Texas. Its retail business is concentrated in El Paso and Las Cruces, while its electricity is also resold to utilities and power marketers. The company began operations on August 30, 1901, as the El Paso Electric Railway Company. Its original business centered on mule-drawn streetcars, which were replaced by electric streetcars in 1902. As the organization evolved, electricity production and distribution became its principal activity. In 1925, it adopted the El Paso Electric Company name and received authorization to conduct business in New Mexico. El Paso Electric operates in a distinctive regulatory and competitive environment. Unlike many Texas utilities, it functions as the principal or sole electric provider in much of its service area, meaning that rate changes and other major utility matters are subject to oversight by municipal authorities and state regulators rather than ordinary retail competition. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial, public-authority, and wholesale customers. Reference material describes a customer base of approximately 400,000 to 437,000 accounts, while more recent company descriptions have placed the total near 450,000; the exact number varies by reporting period and customer definition. Its generation portfolio has included nuclear power, natural gas, purchased electricity, solar power, and wind energy. El Paso Electric has reported ownership or participation in six generating facilities with approximately 2,010 megawatts of net dependable generating capability. Key assets and interests have included a minority interest in the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station in Arizona, the Rio Grande Power Station in New Mexico, several thermal power stations in the El Paso area, and the Hueco Mountain Wind Ranch in Hudspeth County, Texas. The company has also expanded solar generation and supported electric-vehicle charging infrastructure in its service territory. For much of its modern history, El Paso Electric was a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EE. On July 29, 2020, it was acquired by Infrastructure Investments Fund, an infrastructure investment fund associated with J.P. Morgan. The transaction received approval from 99.61 percent of voting shareholders. Following the acquisition, the company ceased to be a publicly traded NYSE issuer. The agreement included commitments concerning the continued presence of the headquarters and workforce in El Paso, customer credits, and regional economic-development funding. Today, El Paso Electric remains an active regulated utility whose central role is to maintain reliable electric service for communities in two states. Its strategic issues include grid investment, generation-resource planning, regulatory approvals, decarbonization, renewable-energy integration, electric-vehicle adoption, affordability, and the reliability requirements of a geographically extensive service territory.

El Paso Electric traces its origins to August 30, 1901, when it began operating as the El Paso Electric Railway Company. Its first principal activity was urban transportation rather than utility generation: the company operated mule-drawn streetcars in El Paso. In 1902, those vehicles were replaced by electric streetcars, linking the business to the development of electrical infrastructure in the region. During the following decades, the company’s electricity operations became increasingly important. By 1925, electricity generation and distribution had become the core of the enterprise, and the company changed its name to El Paso Electric Company. That year it also received authorization to transact business in New Mexico, establishing the cross-border service footprint that later became central to its identity. The modern company operates as a regulated regional utility serving communities in West Texas and southern New Mexico. Its territory covers a large portion of the Rio Grande Valley, broadly extending from Hatch, New Mexico, to Van Horn, Texas. Retail electricity service is concentrated in El Paso and Las Cruces, and the company also supplies wholesale customers and resells power to other utilities and power marketers. Because El Paso Electric is the principal electric provider in much of its area, rates and major regulatory decisions are reviewed by public authorities and state regulators. The company’s generation system has developed around a combination of nuclear energy, natural gas, purchased power, solar, and wind. El Paso Electric owns or participates in multiple generating facilities, including a 15.8 percent interest in the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station near Tonopah, Arizona. Other referenced facilities include the Rio Grande Power Station, Newman Power Station, Copper Power Station, Montana Power Station, and Hueco Mountain Wind Ranch. Its transmission system includes 115-kilovolt and 345-kilovolt lines, as well as two 115-kilovolt interconnections with Mexico. Renewable energy and transportation electrification became more visible parts of the company’s public strategy in the 2010s. By 2013, it had established 32 electric-vehicle charging stations in its service area and was developing the Plug-in Electric Vehicle and Charging Infrastructure Plan for the Rio Grande Valley. In 2014, it announced an agreement with Juwi Solar to develop the 10-megawatt Newman Solar project next to the Newman Generation Station. The project was designed to serve thousands of homes and increase solar capacity within the company’s generation mix. El Paso Electric was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange for much of its recent history under the symbol EE. In 2019, reference material reported operating revenue of $862 million and net income of $123 million. Those figures are historical and do not describe the company’s current financial position. In 2020, Infrastructure Investments Fund acquired El Paso Electric in a transaction approved by 99.61 percent of voting shareholders. The reported total transaction value was $4.3 billion, including the assumption of approximately $1.5 billion in existing debt and the purchase of shares for approximately $2.8 billion at $68.25 per share. The acquisition made the utility privately held and ended its NYSE listing. The agreement included a commitment to retain the headquarters in El Paso and maintain the company’s staff for at least five years. It also included customer credits and a proposed regional Economic Sustainability Fund intended to support economic development in El Paso and New Mexico. The acquisition generated debate because of the company’s monopoly-like position in its service territory and concerns that private ownership might affect future electricity rates. Customer-credit provisions were presented as a way to provide near-term bill relief, while the economic-development commitments were intended to preserve local benefits from the transaction. El Paso Electric continues to operate as an active regulated utility focused on reliability, generation planning, grid modernization, renewable resources, and service to its West Texas and southern New Mexico customers.

• 2020

  Acquisition by Infrastructure Investments Fund

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  Infrastructure Investments Fund acquired the company after approval by 99.61 percent of voting shareholders, taking El Paso Electric private.

• 2014

  Newman Solar project announced

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  El Paso Electric signed an agreement with Juwi Solar to develop a 10-megawatt solar facility near the Newman Generation Station.

• 2013

  Expansion of electric-vehicle charging infrastructure

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material reported 32 electric-vehicle charging stations in the company’s service area and development of a regional charging-infrastructure plan.

• 2005

  Securities litigation settlement

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  A lawsuit concerning alleged misleading disclosures and Enron-related arrangements was resolved through a reported $10 million settlement.

• 1925

  Name changes to El Paso Electric Company

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  Electric generation and distribution had become the company’s principal business, prompting a name change and authorization to operate in New Mexico.

• 1902

  Electric streetcars replace mule-drawn vehicles

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  The company replaced its mule-drawn streetcars with electric streetcars, increasing its involvement in electrical technology and infrastructure.

• 1901

  Operations begin as a streetcar company

  [1]El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org

  The company began serving customers on August 30, 1901, under the name El Paso Electric Railway Company, initially operating mule-drawn streetcars.

Regional regulated electric utility

• Electric utility service

  Retail electricity service

  Regulated electricity supplied to residential, commercial, industrial, and public-authority customers, principally in El Paso, Texas, and Las Cruces, New Mexico. Service includes billing, customer support, connection and distribution functions, and delivery through the company’s local grid.

• Wholesale energy

  Wholesale electricity and power resale

  El Paso Electric sells or resells electricity to other utilities and power marketers in addition to serving retail customers. These activities complement its generation portfolio and transmission connections across the regional power system.

• Electric grid infrastructure

  Transmission and distribution

  The company operates transmission and distribution infrastructure that moves electricity from generating resources and purchased-power sources to customers. Referenced transmission voltages include 115 kilovolts and 345 kilovolts, with interconnections to Mexico.

• Power generation

  Renewable-energy generation

  El Paso Electric’s generation mix includes solar and wind resources alongside nuclear, natural gas, and purchased power. Its renewable development has included the Newman Solar project and ownership of or participation in wind resources such as the Hueco Mountain Wind Ranch.

• Electric mobility program · 2013

  Plug-in Electric Vehicle and Charging Infrastructure Plan

  A regional program intended to support adoption of plug-in electric vehicles by expanding charging infrastructure and encouraging use of electric cars in the Rio Grande Valley. Reference material associated the program with charging stations serving vehicles including the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt.

• 2003

  Alleged misleading disclosures concerning Enron-related arrangements

  A complaint alleged that El Paso Electric had misstated or omitted adverse information concerning arrangements with Enron and had artificially inflated revenues. The litigation was resolved in 2005 through a reported $10 million settlement.

  Source

Read more

• 2014Newman Solar development

  El Paso, Texas

  The company partnered with Juwi Solar to develop a 10-megawatt facility near the Newman Generation Station. The project was presented as a way to expand solar generation and serve more than 3,800 homes annually.

  Outcome. The referenced material anticipated completion by the end of 2014 but does not document the project’s full subsequent operating history.

  Source
• 2013Plug-in Electric Vehicle and Charging Infrastructure Plan

  West Texas · Southern New Mexico

  El Paso Electric promoted electric-vehicle adoption through a regional plan supporting public charging infrastructure. The initiative formed part of the company’s efforts to respond to emerging transportation-electrification demand.

  Outcome. Reference material reported 32 charging stations in the service area by 2013, but does not provide a complete later performance assessment.

  Source

• 2020

  Accept acquisition by Infrastructure Investments FundM&A

  Background

  El Paso Electric was a publicly traded regional monopoly utility, and the proposed transaction raised questions about ownership, future rates, local employment, and community investment.

  Action taken

  The company accepted an acquisition by Infrastructure Investments Fund. Shareholders approved the transaction with 99.61 percent of votes cast, and the company became privately held.

  Aftermath

  The reported transaction value was $4.3 billion, including assumed debt and equity purchase consideration. Commitments included keeping the headquarters in El Paso, maintaining staff for at least five years, providing customer credits, and funding regional economic-development initiatives.

  Reported acquisition value. $4.3 billion total transaction value; approximately $1.5 billion of existing debt assumed and approximately $2.8 billion of stock purchased at $68.25 per share (2020 acquisition)

  Source

• 2014

  Approve development of the Newman Solar facilityProduct launch

  Background

  The company sought to increase solar generation within a portfolio that also included nuclear, natural gas, purchased power, and wind resources.

  Action taken

  El Paso Electric signed an agreement with Juwi Solar to develop, design, build, and operate a 10-megawatt solar facility near the Newman Generation Station.

  Aftermath

  The project was expected to supply electricity for more than 3,800 homes and increase the proportion of solar power in the company’s generation mix. The available reference does not establish its complete later outcome.

  Source

1. 1El Paso Electricen.wikipedia.org
2. 2El Paso Electric official websiteepelectric.com