Sept 11 (Reuters) - Entergy's ( ETR ) Texas unit said on

Thursday it had received approval from the Public Utility

Commission of Texas for its proposal to build two natural gas

power plants amid rapidly increasing demand for electricity in

the region.

Power consumption in the United States is projected to hit

record highs in 2025 and 2026, according to the U.S. Energy

Information Administration (EIA).

The proposed Legend and Lone Star power stations, expected

to be in service by mid-2028, will add more than 1,200 megawatts

of energy to the Southeast Texas power grid, the company said in

a statement.

Between 2019 and 2023, annual commercial sector power demand

increased by 13 terawatt-hours (TWh) in Texas, driven by growth

in data centers, figures from the EIA showed.

"We've heard directly from our customers and communities

about the need for more power to support our rapidly growing

region, and these facilities will deliver just that," Entergy

Texas CEO Eliecer Viamontes said.

Entergy Texas serves nearly 524,000 electric customers

across 27 counties within the state.