Vistra Energy completes 180MW PV project in Texas

June 4, 2018
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Vistra Energy originally purchased the solar project back in May 2017, when the site was under development. Image: Kate Ausburn / Flickr

Vistra Energy has announced that the 180MW Upton 2 Solar Power Plant in West Texas has achieved commercial operation. The solar installation stands as Texas’ largest operating PV facility.

Vistra’s power generating subsidiary, Luminant, will serve as the plant's owner and is also its qualified scheduling entity with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Vistra Energy originally purchased the solar project back in May 2017, when the site was under development.

Curt Morgan, Vistra’s president and chief executive officer, said: “When we announced the project a year ago, we did so knowing that Upton 2 was the perfect fit for Vistra's integrated business model. Through this project, we're enabling our Texas retail brand, TXU Energy, to enhance its retail solar offerings, and we're diversifying Luminant's generation fleet, as well. This project makes strategic sense for us as a business, and we're excited that it is officially powering Texas in time for the 2018 summer.”

The Upton 2 project sits on nearly 769 hectares of land and is comprised of 718,000 PV panels. With its generation capacity, the installation has enough energy to power approximately 56,700 average residences in the market during normal weather conditions — and 27,700 during periods of peak demand.

16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

December 24, 2025
The PV Review, 2025: A look back over a turbulent year in US solar policy changes, from the 'Big, Beautiful Bill' to tariff challenges.
December 24, 2025
Alphabet has announced a definitive agreement to acquire data centre and energy infrastructure solutions provider Intersect for US$4.75 billion in cash. 
December 24, 2025
CPV Renewable Power and Harrison Street Asset Management (HSAM) have begun commercial operations at its 160MW solar project located in Garrett County, Maryland. 
December 24, 2025
PV Tech spoke to Marty Rogers of SolarEdge about how US policy rulings and policy uncertainty affected his company's work in 2025.
December 22, 2025
Emmvee, through its subsidiary Emmvee Energy, has begun operations at its 2.5GW solar module manufacturing plant in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
Premium
December 22, 2025
Tracker producer Nextracker has rebranded as Nextpower to reflect the wider portfolio of products and services it now offers.

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK
Solar Media Events
March 24, 2026
Dallas, Texas
Solar Media Events
April 15, 2026
Milan, Italy
Solar Media Events
June 16, 2026
Napa, USA
Solar Media Events
November 24, 2026
Warsaw, Poland