Houston Battery Project Begins Operations as ERCOT Demands Hit Records

SMT Energy and FlexGen have begun operations at a 160MW/MWh battery storage facility in Houston as Texas' power grid faces record electricity demand.

What is Houston IV?

Developer SMT Energy and energy storage integrator FlexGen announced the start of operations at the Houston IV battery energy storage system (BESS), a 160MW/320MWh facility supporting the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid.

The project joins more than 12 projects developed by SMT and FlexGen to support ERCOT. Irby Construction Company provided engineering, procurement, and construction services.

SMT secured $135 million in financing for Houston IV in February 2025 before breaking ground with CenterPoint Energy in May. SMT and FlexGen said Houston IV was commissioned in six weeks, cutting the deployment timeline by three times compared with the original schedule.

The project adds storage capacity to the ERCOT market as Texas continues to experience periods of elevated electricity demand.

Why does the project matter for ERCOT?

ERCOT recorded a new hourly peak load of 91.1 GW on July 22, 2026, during a heat wave. The record was 6% higher than the previous peak of 85.5 GW set in August 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Natural gas supplied 48% of generation during the peak hour, while solar supplied 32%.

ERCOT has also introduced an incentive program encouraging certain inverter-based resources, including battery storage, to adopt advanced grid-support capabilities.

The Bottom Line

Houston IV expands battery storage capacity serving ERCOT at a time when Texas electricity demand is reaching record levels. Its six-week commissioning also highlights the push to deploy grid-scale storage more quickly.