Sharyland TDU Charges: History and the Oncor Transition
If you live in South Texas, McAllen, or parts of West Texas and have looked at your utility paperwork, you may have run across references to Sharyland Utilities. Historically, Sharyland was known for having some of the highest transmission and distribution utility (TDU) charges in the state.
However, if you are looking for current Sharyland TDU delivery rates, you will find that the Texas retail market looks very different today.
In this guide, we will explain the history of Sharyland Utilities, detail their transition into Oncor Electric Delivery, outline how TDU charges work for former Sharyland customers today, and show you how to compare rates using GetElectricity.
The History: Why Were Sharyland Charges So High?
Sharyland Utilities was established in 1999 as a regulated electric utility in Texas. Unlike older utilities with dense metropolitan customer bases, Sharyland's network was highly rural, serving agricultural operations, oil fields, and sparsely populated pockets of South and West Texas.
Because Sharyland had to construct and maintain miles of high-voltage transmission lines for a relatively small number of customers, the cost of grid maintenance per customer was high.
By 2017, Sharyland residential delivery charges were nearly double the rates of urban utilities like CenterPoint and Oncor, adding significant overhead to local households and commercial operations.
The Transition: Sharyland Joins Oncor
To resolve the high delivery rate disparity, Sharyland Utilities and Oncor Electric Delivery entered into a Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT)-approved asset swap in late 2017 and early 2018.
- The Deal: Oncor acquired Sharyland’s retail transmission lines, poles, substations, and retail customer accounts. Sharyland transitioned into a pure wholesale transmission developer, maintaining high-voltage grid infrastructure but leaving local customer delivery to Oncor.
- The Impact: Former Sharyland customers were integrated into the Oncor service area. This transition immediately lowered delivery charges for thousands of residents and businesses in McAllen, Mission, and West Texas as they moved onto Oncor's unified rate structure.
How TDU Delivery Charges Work Today
If you reside in a community formerly served by Sharyland, your utility service is now fully managed by Oncor.
Your TDU charges are determined by Oncor's regulated tariffs, which are adjusted twice a year (March 1 and September 1) with PUCT approval. Below is an interactive comparison of the pass-through charges across all major Texas utility territories:
- No REP Markup: Your retail electric provider (REP) is legally prohibited from marking up TDU charges. They must pass them through to your invoice exactly as regulated by the state.
- Line Items: TDU fees appear on your statement as a combination of a flat monthly customer fee (e.g., $4.39) and a volumetric per-kWh charge (e.g., ~4.5¢ per kWh).
Shop the Best Rates in Former Sharyland Territories with GetElectricity
Because your delivery network is now Oncor, you have access to a wide array of competitive retail plans. GetElectricity is designed to help you navigate these options:
- TDU Tariff Verification: We ensure that your provider passes through Oncor's exact, updated TDU delivery charges without hidden administrative markups.
- Comparing Fixed-Rate Security: We help former Sharyland customers find stable fixed-rate plans, shielding you from seasonal price hikes on the ERCOT grid.
- Smart Meter Integration: We connect directly to your historical smart meter usage to display the actual average monthly cost you would pay under each plan, eliminating the guesswork of standardized estimates.
Take control of your utility costs. Browse and compare competitive Oncor energy plans on GetElectricity today.