CORPUS CHRISTI — The Nueces River Authority proposed plans for a desalination plant on Corpus Christi Bay in 2024 and entered a partnership with IDE Technologies. This development occurred while the authority faced allegations of financial misrepresentation from its former chief operating officer, Travis Pruski, who resigned in May.

The Nueces River Authority, based in Uvalde, collected $6.4 million from 18 cities, towns, and utilities since March 2023. These funds were allocated for lobbying and engineering contracts for the Harbor Island desalination project. John Byrum, executive director of the Nueces River Authority, stated that "Texas needed a sustainable supply of water in that area to protect the industry." He added, "We're going to make sure there is some downward pricing pressure."

In 2024, Byrum sent a proposal to the Port of Corpus Christi Authority to orchestrate the development of a seawater desalination plant on Harbor Island. In May, the Nueces River Authority announced its partnership with IDE Technologies, an Israel-based company. Under the terms of this partnership, IDE Technologies would own and operate the facility, selling water to the Nueces River Authority through a public-private partnership. Byrum stated, "They need authority to sell water in Texas and we are that authority."

Corpus Christi's City Council voted to put a $2.7 million deposit on the Nueces River Authority project last year. Corpus Christi Mayor Paulette Guajardo opposed the deposit, writing on Facebook in April that the Nueces River Authority should refund the city's deposit. Guajardo stated, "There were serious concerns." She also wrote, "I did not see a clear, logical plan, funding mechanism, or sufficient information."

Pruski, the former chief operating officer, resigned from the Nueces River Authority in May. In his resignation letter, Pruski alleged that Byrum misrepresented financial figures to Corpus Christi's City Council and the agency's board members. Byrum has since denied these allegations. An internal review by the Nueces River Authority last month cleared Byrum of malfeasance. Pruski had previously presented plans to the Kyle City Council in October to build a pipeline from the coast by 2032. At that time, he told the Kyle City Council, "We're actually 90 percent sold out now." He added, "You would buy the last 10 percent of the water." The city of Kyle paid a $500,000 deposit to reserve water, and the Nueces River Authority continued to sell water reservations for five months after Kyle made its deposit. Pruski stated, "I'm not really wanting to talk about that right now."