This Texas coal mine will soon be home to a 1.2GW solar farm

A company called Panamint Capital has broken ground on a huge solar and battery storage project in Bremond, Texas, built on land next to an active coal mine and coal-fired power plant. The $1.7 billion project, called Big Rooter Power, will eventually generate 1.2 gigawatts of solar power plus 1.6 gigawatt-hours of battery storage, making it one of the largest solar builds in the country. The first section, 491 megawatts, is due online in August 2028, with the rest following by August 2029. Unlike similar "coal-to-solar" projects elsewhere that go on retired mine land, this one sits beside coal operations that will keep running — the company says it has no plans to retire the neighboring coal plant, and may even expand the coal mine.

For homeowners, this isn't a program you can sign up for, but it's a sign of where Texas power is headed. Texas is on track to generate more electricity from solar than coal this year, driven partly by rising demand from data centers and heavier air-conditioning use in hot weather. More large-scale solar and battery storage coming online can mean a more stable grid and potentially more competitive electricity prices over time, though this project won't change your bill directly.

The story also reflects a broader trend of building solar and storage on old industrial or mining sites rather than farmland, which developers say draws less local opposition. Federal tax incentives that helped fund such projects have been scaled back recently, but some states are stepping in with their own incentives for building clean energy on these previously used sites.