MIDLAND, Texas — Oil and gas may be the bread and butter in West Texas, but the area is also home to other types of energy, like wind.
On Monday, the Midland County Commissioners took a step towards helping one oil company, Pioneer Natural Resources, set up their own wind farm on their property in the county.
Pioneer wants to use wind to actually help them run their oil and gas operations on over 25,000 acres of their property, while also aiming to reduce emissions.
However, the company first wants to apply for a tax abatement, so the county started the first step today to allow them to do that by approving a reinvestment zone for the Pioneer Hutt Renewable Project.
Pioneer Hutt Wind Energy is an LLC that uses wind power to generate electricity, and they are another step closer to making an impact in Midland.
“They’ll be putting in, I believe its 50+ windmills south of town on property that Pioneer owns – the Hutt Ranch – and that energy that’s generated is scheduled to power Pioneer’s requirements out there on that ranch," said Midland County Judge Terry Johnson. "There will be extra electricity that’s available and it will be put in the ERCOT grid.”
Johnson says the project is estimated to create over 100 construction jobs and four-to-six permanent jobs when it is completed.
“This thing will add jobs, add construction jobs, it will add permanent jobs once the site is completed," said Johnson. "There’s always supplies and services that need to be done on facilities like this. Pioneer, one thing it does do, it supports Pioneer. Pioneer has been a leader in our economy here in the Permian Basin, especially here in Midland.”
The decision on a tax abatement has been tabled for the moment, but Johnson appears optimistic for the future if it ends up getting approved.
“This will increase, at some point after the depreciation and after the tax abatement period is over with – which right now is being considered a 10-year period – then this will increase tax revenues at the end of that 10 years from there moving forward," said Johnson.
A tax abatement exempts taxation from all or part of the increase in the value of the real property for a period not to exceed 10 years.
Johnson says the court hopes to make a decision on the tax abatement to Pioneer during its next meeting.