Renewables & PPAs for Commercial Buyers
May 19, 2026
7 min read
Google's Texas Solar PPA: What Commercial Buyers Should Do
Google just locked up 500 MW of Texas solar for 15 years. Hyperscaler PPAs at this scale tighten the commercial renewable market and change how smaller buyers should sequence their next contract.
The News
While most businesses focus on their next electricity bill, Google just signed a 15-year deal for 500 MW of Texas solar, and that kind of move has ripple effects for commercial buyers still planning their own energy contracts. The deal, signed with developer Linea Energy, covers output from the Duffy Solar Project in Matagorda County and includes a co-located 235 MWac battery energy storage system already under construction.
For commercial and industrial electricity buyers in ERCOT, this is the latest signal that large-load customers are systematically absorbing Texas renewable capacity in 15 to 25-year blocks. That compresses the window for smaller commercial buyers to lock in competitive renewable rates before supply tightens further. A Texas commercial electricity PPA at this scale reshapes the procurement environment for buyers operating under 5 MW load.
What Happened
Google signed a 15-year power purchase agreement with Linea Energy for 500 MW of solar capacity from the Duffy Solar Project, a 3,526-acre utility-scale facility in Matagorda County, Texas. The project is co-developed with a 235 MWac battery energy storage system (Duffy BESS) that is already under construction. Construction on the solar project starts Q3 2026, and the deal supplies Google's ERCOT-connected data center operations. Details on the announcement were published by W.Media, ESG News, and ESG Today.
The deal lands as ERCOT crosses a structural threshold. According to the EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook, utility-scale solar will exceed coal generation in ERCOT in 2026 for the first time: roughly 78 billion kWh of solar versus 60 billion kWh of coal, with the gap widening to 99 billion versus 66 billion in 2027. The Duffy project adds to that buildout, and the BESS component means more of that solar output can be shifted into evening hours when load remains high.
Impact on Texas Commercial Electricity Buyers
This deal matters for commercial buyers in three concrete ways: midday wholesale pricing, contract supply, and grid reliability economics. Each affects different parts of your procurement and operations strategy.
Midday Price Suppression, Evening Risk
Adding 500 MW of solar plus 235 MWac of co-located storage to ERCOT pushes wholesale prices lower during peak solar hours, which benefits indexed buyers with daytime load. But that same shift concentrates price risk in the evening ramp, when solar fades and storage discharges into still-elevated demand. Buyers on indexed or block-and-index contracts should expect a wider spread between noon and 7 PM pricing as more projects like Duffy come online.
Shrinking Renewable Supply for Smaller Buyers
Hyperscalers locking up renewable capacity in 15-year blocks shrinks the pool available for shorter commercial contracts. Buyers seeking 1 to 5-year renewable addendums or green tariffs may face higher premiums or fewer options within 12 to 24 months. The competitive renewable pricing available today reflects a supply pool that is being steadily absorbed by deals like this one.
Stabilized Frequency, Lower Scarcity Risk
The BESS component does more than shape solar output. Battery storage at this scale stabilizes ERCOT grid frequency and reduces the probability and severity of scarcity pricing events. For commercial buyers exposed to ancillary services pass-throughs or scarcity-driven cost spikes, more storage on the grid is structurally positive for cost predictability.
The Commercial Buyer's PPA Signal Checklist
Use this checklist to decide whether a corporate mega-PPA like Google's should trigger a change in your procurement timeline or contract strategy. Run through these seven action steps before your next renewal conversation.
1. Review your contract expiration timeline. If your contract expires in 18 months or less, begin RFP conversations now, before more renewable capacity gets absorbed by other hyperscaler deals.
2. **Ask your REP or broker about renewable addendums at your load size** (under 500 kW, 500 kW to 2 MW, 2 MW or larger). Compare quotes to where pricing sat 6 months ago.
3. **Evaluate indexed contract exposure.** Ask your provider to model the daytime versus overnight cost split, since solar-heavy patterns are creating a structural split in pricing across the day.
4. **Check demand response eligibility.** With more BESS entering ERCOT, demand response programs can offset peak-hour costs and add a revenue line, particularly for buyers with flexible load.
5. **Request a 3 to 5-year forward price forecast** from your broker. Large renewable projects changing the supply curve make forward pricing more meaningful, not less.
6. **Document your sustainability goals.** Use the Google deal logic to structure a renewable supply conversation with your broker even at smaller scales. Specifics about Scope 2 targets shift the conversation from price to product.
7. **Watch for green tariff program updates from your TDU.** Check current offerings from [AEP Texas](https://www.aeptexas.com), Oncor, CenterPoint, and TNMP, since utility-led renewable programs in competitive ERCOT territories are less common but evolving.
Questions to Ask Your REP or Broker
- With hyperscalers locking up Texas renewable capacity in 15-year PPAs, what shorter-term renewable options are still available at my load size?
- How does 500 MW of new solar plus 235 MW of co-located storage entering ERCOT affect wholesale pricing on my indexed or block-and-index contract over 12 to 24 months?
- Should I lock in a renewable addendum or green tariff now, or will more capacity come to market soon enough to keep prices competitive?
- What is my current contract's overnight and evening pricing exposure as solar-heavy daytime generation pushes price volatility into off-peak hours?
- Does my facility qualify for ERCOT demand response programs that could offset scarcity pricing risk and add a revenue stream?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a PPA, and how does a corporate deal like Google's affect my business electricity costs?
A power purchase agreement (PPA) reserves the output of a generation project for a specific buyer over a defined term. When Google signs a 500 MW PPA, that output is no longer available on the open market for other buyers. Over a 12 to 24-month horizon, as corporate buyers absorb more of the Texas renewable pipeline through deals like this, smaller commercial accounts may see higher premiums for renewable products or fewer fixed-price green options.
I am a small business. Does a 500 MW Google deal really affect my electricity rates?
Not directly in the short term. Your next quote will not visibly move because of one PPA. But the cumulative effect of hyperscaler PPAs across ERCOT does change the renewable supply curve over 12 to 24 months. The result is fewer competitive renewable addendums for small to mid-size buyers and a wider gap between standard and green pricing tiers. The earlier you secure a renewable contract, the more options you have.
What is the Duffy Solar Project?
The Duffy Solar Project is a 500 MW utility-scale solar farm spanning 3,526 acres in Matagorda County, Texas, developed by Linea Energy. It is co-located with the Duffy Battery Energy Storage System, a 235 MWac battery installation that is already under construction. Output from the solar project is contracted to Google under a 15-year PPA to supply ERCOT-connected data center operations. The BESS component smooths solar generation variability and adds dispatchable capacity that can moderate scarcity pricing events on the ERCOT grid. Additional context on ERCOT generation trends is available from ERCOT and reported by SolarQuarter.
Will more renewable PPAs lower my commercial electricity rate?
The wholesale price impact is mixed. More solar capacity tends to suppress midday wholesale prices, which helps indexed and time-of-use buyers with flexible daytime load. But it concentrates price risk in evening ramp hours, when solar output fades. For fixed-rate commercial buyers, the bigger near-term factor is renewable supply absorption: as more capacity is locked into long-term corporate PPAs, the premium on shorter renewable products may rise even if wholesale energy prices stay flat.
Originally published at texascommercialplans.com
