Hydroelectric Dams in Texas

How many hydroelectric dams are there in Texas?

According to the Texas Comptroller, there are currently 26 hydroelectric dams in the state of Texas.

There are many more non-power dams across the state, but only a few locations meet the requirements to host a dam.

Dam Name	Owner	Location	Capacity (MWh)
Mansfield Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Austin, Texas	108
Denison	UCSE-Tulsa District	Lake Texoma	104.3
Toledo Bend	Entergy Texas	Sabine River (Texas – Louisiana border)	81
Amistad Dam & Power	International Boundary and Water Commission	Amistad Reservoir (Texas – Mexico border)	66
Buchanan Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Between Llano and Burnet, Texas	54.9
Wirtz Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Lake Lyndon B. Johnson	54
Sam Rayburn	USCE-Fort Worth District	North of Jasper, Texas	52
Whitney	USCE-Fort Worth District	Lake Whitney (Southeast of Hillsboro, Texas)	41.8
Starcke Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Marble Falls, Texas	39.6
Falcon Dam & Power	International Boundary and Water Commission	South of Laredo, Texas	31.5
Lake Livingston	East Texas Electric Cooperative	Livingston, Texas	26.7
Tom Miller Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Austin, Texas	18
Inks Dam	Lower Colorado River Authority	Inks Lake State Park	15
Eagle Pass Hydro	Maverick City Water Control and Improvement	Eagle Pass, Texas (Texas – Mexico border)	9.6
Robert D. Willis	USCE-Fort Worth District	Southwest of Jasper, Texas	8
Canyon	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	Canyon Lake	6
Dunlap TP 1	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	Seguin, Texas	3.6
Lewisville Lake Dam	City of Garland	Lewisville, Texas	2.8
Abbot TP 3	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	McQueeny, Texas	2.8
H5	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	East of San Antonio	2.4
H4	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	East of San Antonio	2.4
Nolte	Guadelupe-Blanco River Authority	Seguin, Texas	2.4
TP4	Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority	Seguin, Texas	2.4
Arlington Outlet Hydroelectric Generator	Tarrant Regional Water District	Southeast of Fort Worth, Texas	1.3
Gonzales Hydro Plant	City of Gonzales	Gonazles, Texas	0.9
Saffold Dam	City of Seguin	Seguin, Texas	0.25

Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/economy/economic-data/energy/2023/hydro.php

How much power is generated from hydroelectric plants in Texas?

Together they have a maximum capacity of 481 megawatts (MW). This is less than 0.5% of the Texas’ total generating capacity. The grid in Texas relies more heavily on renewable resources like wind and solar, as they are much more abundant in the state.

How drought impacts hydropower in Texas

Drought in Texas can have a significant impact on the state’s hydropower generation capacity due to reduced availability of water in key rivers and reservoirs that feed the plants stationed at those locations.

Photo attribution: MisterKenobi, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Written by Graham Lumley

Graham Lumley, Growth Product Manager at BKV Energy, leads digital and traditional marketing strategies, focusing on educating Texans about the state's deregulated energy market. With over 10 years of marketing experience, he creates content to help consumers understand and save on their energy bills, bringing a fresh and dynamic approach to the industry.