TNMP delivers electricity to scattered pockets of Texas, not one continuous region. It does not sell electricity plans.
TNMP is the utility for a scatter of Texas communities, several of them right next to much larger utilities. Here is what that means for your service, your bill, and who to call when the lights go out.
Utility territories follow service addresses rather than city or ZIP boundaries. Confirm the utility for your specific address before you rely on it.
Texas-New Mexico Power is a transmission and distribution utility serving separated pockets of Texas rather than one continuous region. In TNMP's own words, it does not provide retail electric service: under Public Utility Commission of Texas rules its role is to build and maintain electric lines.
That scattered footprint is the single most useful thing to understand about TNMP. Its communities sit next to — and are frequently confused with — much larger neighbouring utilities, particularly along the Gulf Coast south of Houston, where CenterPoint territory ends and TNMP's begins without any obvious change in the landscape.
Across its Gulf Coast, North-Central and West Texas service areas, whoever you buy your plan from.
Building and maintaining electric lines is, by TNMP’s own description, its defining role. The poles, wires and meter serving your address are TNMP’s.
TNMP records the usage your retail provider bills you for.
Its Gulf Coast territory is exposed to hurricanes and coastal storms, and restoration there is TNMP’s responsibility. A retail provider has no crews.
Two companies are involved in your electricity service. TNMP delivers the electricity. Your retail electricity provider (REP) sells you the plan.
You chose the provider. You did not choose TNMP — it came with the address, and it stays put however many times you switch.
| TNMP (utility) | Your provider (REP) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who are they? | TNMP, your utility | The retail provider you signed up with |
| What do they do? | Delivers electricity to your meter | Sells you the electricity plan |
| Did you choose them? | No — set by your address | Yes |
| Who owns the wires and meter? | TNMP | No one — the REP owns no equipment |
| Who restores your power? | TNMP | Cannot restore power |
| Who sets your rate? | No — its delivery charges are regulated | Yes |
| Who do you call about a bill? | Not TNMP | Your retail provider |
Power out, downed line, damaged meter, or a problem with the wires: TNMP. Rate, contract, deposit, bill, or enrollment question: your retail provider.
TNMP does not serve one region. Its territory is organised into separate service areas across three broad parts of the state, and they do not touch each other.
Gulf Coast: the largest concentration, with more than 125,000 homes and businesses across parts of Brazoria and Galveston counties — the communities immediately south and south-east of Houston.
North-Central Texas: a set of communities including Lewisville, along with smaller towns spread through Central Texas.
West Texas: a separate group of far-west communities out toward the Pecos River.
League City, Texas City, Friendswood, Dickinson, Alvin, Angleton, Brazoria, Sweeny and West Columbia sit in TNMP’s Gulf Coast area; Lewisville, Gatesville and Glen Rose in its North-Central area; and Fort Stockton, Pecos and Kermit in West Texas.
The Houston edge is the big one: TNMP's Gulf Coast communities sit immediately outside CenterPoint's Houston territory. League City, Texas City, Friendswood and Dickinson are TNMP, not CenterPoint, even though they are firmly inside the Houston metropolitan area and are often described as part of it. If you have moved a few miles south and your bill looks different, this is usually why.
Lewisville is not Oncor: in North Texas, TNMP's Lewisville-area territory sits inside a region otherwise dominated by Oncor. TNMP does not serve the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex generally.
Not the whole town: because TNMP's areas are small and irregular, it is particularly common here for a named town to be split between TNMP and a neighbouring utility or cooperative.
For the statewide picture of which utility covers which region, see our guide to Texas electric utilities.
Report outages to TNMP, not to your retail electricity provider. Providers sell plans and handle billing; they have no crews, no trucks, and no ability to restore your power. Every outage, downed line and piece of damaged equipment belongs to the utility.
Never approach or drive over a downed line, and assume it is live. Move well clear, call 911 if anyone is in danger, then report it to TNMP.
| What you need | Texas-New Mexico Power |
|---|---|
| Report an outage | 888-866-7456 |
| Report a downed line | Call 911 first if anyone is in danger, then TNMP |
| Rate, bill or contract question | Not the utility — contact your retail electricity provider |
Check whether the outage is only your property. If your neighbours have power, the problem may be your own breaker or equipment on your side of the meter, which is the property owner's responsibility rather than the utility's. If the whole street is dark, it is a distribution outage and the utility already needs to hear about it.
Part of every TNMP-area electricity bill pays TNMP to deliver the power rather than your provider to supply it. These delivery charges are regulated, they apply to every plan in the territory, and they are the same whichever retail provider you choose.
They come in two parts: a fixed monthly charge that applies whatever you use, and a per-kWh charge that rises with your usage.
Estimated delivery cost = monthly base charge + (per-kWh delivery charge × kWh used)
| Monthly usage | Base charge | Per-kWh delivery | Estimated delivery cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 kWh | $7.85 | 6.4410¢ | $40.05 |
| 1,000 kWh | $7.85 | 6.4410¢ | $72.26 |
| 2,000 kWh | $7.85 | 6.4410¢ | $136.67 |
Providers present delivery charges in one of two ways, and the difference matters when you compare plans. Some itemize them as a separate TDU delivery charge line, so you can see exactly what goes to TNMP. Others fold them into a single all-in cents-per-kWh rate. Neither is cheaper by itself — but two plans are only comparable once you know which style you are looking at.
Delivery is a floor under every plan available at your address, so it is not what separates a good plan from a bad one. For a deeper look at how these charges move and why a "fixed" rate can still change, see our guide to TDU delivery charges in Texas.
No. Switching your retail electricity provider changes nothing physical about your service.
TNMP remains your utility. The same wires deliver your power, the same meter records it, the same crews respond when it fails, and the same regulated delivery charges apply. Nobody visits your home, nothing is disconnected, and there is no interruption during the switch.
Your energy charge, your contract length, your plan structure, any bill credits or fees, and who sends your bill. In other words, the parts of the bill a competitive market is meant to compete over — not the delivery infrastructure underneath it.
If you are considering a change, our guide to how to switch electricity providers walks through the process and the timing.
Because TNMP's delivery charges apply identically to every plan at your address, they are not the variable worth shopping. What varies between plans is how each provider prices energy on top of delivery, and how clearly it tells you so in advance.
Start with the Electricity Facts Label. Every plan is required to have one, and it breaks out the energy charge, the TDU delivery charges, base or minimum-usage fees, bill credits, contract length, and the early termination fee.
Then check the price at your usage. The EFL shows an average price at 500, 1,000 and 2,000 kWh, and plans routinely swap places between those levels. Because TNMP delivery charges differ from those of the neighbouring utilities, a plan quoted for a Houston address will not produce the same bill at a League City one — compare using your actual address rather than the nearest big city.
To compare plans available in this territory, start with our Texas electricity rates page, or see how to choose a Texas electricity plan for the full comparison method.
Retail electricity providers compete across TNMP's service areas, and most of the large statewide retailers serve them. TNMP delivers the power for all of them equally, and neither endorses nor has any relationship with the providers serving its territory.
The providers below are a selection of established names operating in the area, not a ranking.
| Provider | What They’re Known For |
|---|---|
 | Large, long-established Texas retail provider with a wide range of residential plans. |
 | Long-established Texas retail provider offering fixed-rate and bill-credit plans. |
 | Retail provider known for 100% renewable plans and bill-credit options. |
 | Retail provider focused on 100% renewable energy plans. |
 | Established Texas electricity provider known for straightforward service. |
Availability and plan terms vary by address and change over time. Compare current offers for a specific address on our Texas electricity rates page.
Your utility follows the address, not you. Moving within a TNMP service area keeps TNMP as your utility, and you can take an existing plan with you or shop for a new one.
TNMP's scattered footprint makes this worth checking more carefully than usual. A move of a few miles — particularly around the southern edge of Houston — can move you between TNMP and CenterPoint, which changes your delivery charges even though nothing else about the neighbourhood looks different.
Confirm the utility for that exact address rather than the city or ZIP, since both can straddle a boundary. An existing electricity bill for the property, or its ESI ID, settles it. Then start service in your name before your move-in date so the power is on when you arrive.
Texas electricity plans can be difficult to compare. Power Texas brings rates, providers, plan details, and helpful information together so you can understand your options and choose an electricity plan with confidence.
Whether you want to shop on your own or have questions along the way, our goal is to make finding electricity simpler.
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Power Texas may receive compensation from electricity providers when customers enroll through our marketplace. However, commissions, advertising relationships, and other commercial arrangements do not determine our editorial content or recommendations.
Our recommendations are based on our independent assessment of the Texas electricity market and the information we believe is most useful to consumers.
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