Entergy projects aim to strengthen energy reliability, lower costs

Unlike retail electric providers such as Reliant Energy and TXU Energy, which offer a variety of plans and home services, Garcia said Entergy acts primarily as a regulated utility company responsible for delivering power, maintaining infrastructure and providing service in specific regulated areas.

Garcia said the Millbend Substation—a roughly $63 million project consisting of several electrical towers and around 6 miles of transmission lines—began operating in January. He said the station was built to help support areas of Montgomery County experiencing growth.

The total population of the New Caney-Porter area grew by just over 30% over five years, rising from 64,476 residents in 2019 to 84,010 residents in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

“[The Millbend Substation] creates resiliency and a redundant power source for all those communities, because obviously, they already have power,” Garcia said. “What it’s doing is creating backup power for that community.”

In addition to the substation, Garcia said Entergy currently has three new power plants in the region that will further strengthen reliability and energy production throughout the state.

A closer look

Sean Meredith, Entergy’s vice president of capital projects, said the new substation is part of Entergy’s Southeast Texas Energy Plan, also known as the STEP Ahead program, which focuses on investing in energy infrastructure ahead of growth to provide adequate energy coverage and keep prices affordable.

Meredith said one aspect of the STEP Ahead program includes creating weather-resilient infrastructure, which he said was taken into account when constructing the Millbend Substation.

“If a hurricane blows through, there may not be roofs on buildings, but those [towers] are going to be standing,” Meredith said. “These are built to withstand the strongest storms.”

Garcia said the STEP Ahead program aims to keep electric rates affordable. As their service area continues to grow, Garcia said the increasing number of customers helps spread out and lower costs.

Garcia also said the company is increasing its efforts to produce energy through the STEP Ahead program with the addition of the Lone Star Power Station in Cleveland, the Legend Power Station in Port Arthur and the Orange County Advanced Power Station in Orange.

“We’ve got to have that base load of sufficient 24/7 dispatchable power,” Garcia said, adding that the additional energy production would help strengthen electrical reliability throughout the company’s coverage area.

Stuart Barrett, Entergy’s vice president of customer service, said the new substation includes modern equipment that can automatically shift power to other lines if there’s a problem, which he said would help shorten outage times.​

“By modernizing our infrastructure now, we’re helping businesses stay open, keeping families safe during storms and helping our communities recover more quickly when severe weather occurs,” Barrett said.

Kelley Mattlage, chief operating officer of the East Montgomery County Improvement District, stressed the importance of allowing businesses to operate in a space with reliable energy.

“Electricity is one of the things that are essential to operations,” Mattlage said. “You can’t have a production line go offline when customers are depending on you.”

Meredith said officials will be able to add additional infrastructure to the substation as the area continues to grow.

Some context

While Entergy Texas primarily produces power using natural gas, the Orange County Advanced Power Station will have the capacity to switch to hydrogen. Here’s a look at how that power reaches homes:

1. Generation: Power plants produce electricity.
2. Step-up transformer: Voltage is increased to reduce energy loss over long distances.
3. Transmission lines: High-voltage lines on large towers transport electricity long distances.
4. Substation: High voltage is reduced to a lower voltage for safety.
5. Distribution lines: Power is transported through smaller poles or cables to neighborhoods.
6. Distribution transformer: Voltage is lowered further to a safe, usable level before entering the home through a service drop to the meter.

• “Usually, the conversation around infrastructure is ‘Why are we always playing catch-up?’ [Entergy] is making sure there’s enough power ... as more business is coming," said Mark Linabury, president and CEO of the Greater East Montgomery County Chamber.
• “What you’re adding here is not just the [energy] infrastructure, but it is adding to the security of the people of this community," Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough said.

Garcia said one of the main functions of Entergy’s STEP Ahead program was to keep costs low for consumers

“We’re really trying to manage our pricing around the effect it has on our customers’ bills,” Garcia said. “We’ve ... got to be good stewards of our customers.”

Entergy offers several support initiatives aimed at helping customers understand and pay their bills. By visiting billtoolkit.entergy.com, customers can receive:

• Additional time to pay bills
• Help lowering their bills
• Help managing their bills to tailor payments to individual customers