Start-up Withdraws Texas Retail Provider Application, Without Prejudice

Energy Operations Group, LLC, a start-up, filed to withdraw its Option 1 Texas retail electric provider application, without prejudice to refiling at a later date

Energy Operations Group, "has elected not to pursue the pending application at this time and wishes to preserve the option to submit a new application in the future," Energy Operations Group said in a filing

A Texas PUC ALJ granted the withdrawal without prejudice

As first reported by EnergyChoiceMatters.com, Ryan Thomason is founder and CEO at Energy Operations Group. Thomason has more than 25 years of experience in retail energy and competitive power markets, including in ERCOT and PJM, with prior positions including Vice President of Operations and Technology at Summer Energy, Head Of Texas Operations at OhmConnect, and Vice President of Operations at GridPlus Energy

Energy Operations Group had sought to use four trade names under its REP application: Brisket Power, Bare Electricity, Cognitive Electric, and Vamos Power

As previously reported, Energy Operations Group is a recently formed company described as, "a specialized operating firm focused on building, stabilizing, and scaling retail energy platforms in deregulated markets," offering various services to retail suppliers, investors, and market entrants

Energy Operations Group filed the withdrawal of the application on the same day that the company answered interrogatories from Texas PUC Staff concerning Thomason's prior employment at Gridplus Texas Inc.

Gridplus Texas had its ERCOT standard-form market-participant agreement terminated in April 2021 in the wake of winter storm Uri, and had its Texas REP certificate revoked in 2022. Prior to such termination and revocation, all of Gridplus's customers were acquired by Ampra Energy, and no customers were dropped to POLR in a mass transition

Thomason in response to a PUC Staff data request stated, "During my employment with GridPlus Texas Inc. d/b/a GridPlus Energy, my responsibilities included customer enrollment and account management, payments and collections, customer service, and electronic data interchange (EDI) transaction processing."

Thomason in response to a PUC Staff data request stated, "I did not have responsibility for wholesale procurement, hedging, load forecasting, settlements, collateral management, or treasury functions," at GridPlus Energy

Thomason in response to a PUC Staff data request stated, "My employment with GridPlus Texas Inc. d/b/a GridPlus Energy ended on April 16, 2021, before Commission Staff filed its petition to revoke GridPlus's retail electric provider certificate on May 17, 2021."

Thomason in response to a PUC Staff data request stated, "My employment status is also expressly addressed in the Joint Response to Order No. 9 filed by Commission Staff on October 22, 2021, in Docket No. 52033 [GridPlus revocation proceeding], Item No. 22, page 2, footnote 1: 'Mr. Thomason was no longer an employee of GridPlus at the time the [revocation] petition was filed.'"

Docket 60142