EL PASO – El Paso Electric’s new $211 million natural-gas-fired, 228-MW Newman 6 generator is now online, producing enough electricity to supply about 120,000 homes.
To fund the generator, El Paso Electric customers will pay monthly bill surcharges, which started with an additional $2.50 in February. Utility officials recently filed a request for an additional average $2.50 monthly charge.
The generator can power up in 30 minutes compared to 12 to 14 hours for older generators. The new generator will also allow the retirement of three 60-year-old generators and will reduce the company’s water usage by about 600 million gallons a year.
The Newman plant is on 175 acres in a mostly undeveloped area at Stan Roberts Sr. Dr. and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.