Proposal reflects largest investment in
Greater Houston infrastructure in
the company's nearly 160-year history and includes a proposal to
forego $110 million in
profits
HOUSTON, Aug. 28,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CenterPoint Energy today
announced the completion, ahead of schedule, of core
resiliency actions as part of the first phase of its Greater
Houston Resiliency Initiative (GHRI) – which included a series of
targeted actions to improve the resiliency of CenterPoint Houston
Electric's grid this hurricane season. In addition, in a letter to
lawmakers, the company also announced the boldest series of
resiliency actions in its history, including: (1) a second phase of
GHRI, which will include system hardening, strategic
undergrounding, self-healing grid technology and further
enhancements to the company's outage tracker; and (2) a longer-term
proposal – which will be filed after discussions with stakeholders,
elected officials, and customers – of approximately $5 billion in resiliency investment from 2026 to
2028, potentially doubling its prior planned investment.
"We have heard the call to action from our customers and elected
officials, and we are responding with bold actions. Our defining
goal, going forward, is this: to build the most resilient coastal
grid in the country that can better withstand the extreme weather
of the future. To achieve this ambition, we will undertake a
historic level of resiliency actions and investment, because this
is what the people of the Greater
Houston area expect and deserve," said Jason Wells, CenterPoint President and CEO.
CenterPoint's Plan of Action
CenterPoint's resiliency
plans include a series of immediate, near- and longer-term actions,
some of which the company has already begun, including the
immediate first phase of GHRI.
Immediate Actions: Completed Ahead of
Schedule
CenterPoint undertook a series of actions as part
of the first phase of its GHRI to immediately strengthen the
electric system and address heightened risks posed by the current
hurricane season. During this phase, more than 2,500 employees and
contractors were mobilized and, as of August
27, the company has successfully completed all three core
resiliency actions ahead of schedule, including:
- Installing more than 300 automation devices to help reduce the
impact of outages during storms; (completed on 08/11/24)
- Installing more than 1,000 stronger poles that can withstand
more powerful winds (completed on 08/20/24); and
- Trimming and/or removing hazardous vegetation from more than
2,000 miles of power lines (completed on 08/27/2024)
In addition to this immediate resiliency work, CenterPoint has
completed 39 of the 42 critical actions previously identified as
part of its broader GHRI plan. To learn more about this immediate
phase of progress, please visit
CenterPointEnergy.com/TakingAction.
Near-Term Actions (September 1 to June
1, 2025)
CenterPoint will launch the near-term phase
of its resiliency actions on September
1, which will include additional actions to further: 1)
strengthen grid resiliency, 2) improve public and customer
communications and 3) strengthen local, community and emergency
partnerships in preparation for this winter and before the 2025
hurricane season. Actions, such as further hardening of the grid, a
year-round campaign on safety, and joint preparedness exercises
with local emergency management offices, are outlined in the
attached letter to lawmakers. The company will provide a more
detailed work plan and schedule for this second phase of actions by
September 30.
Longer-Term Actions (2026-2028)
As part of its
longer-term strategy, CenterPoint will also propose investing
approximately $5 billion from 2026 to
2028 – the largest investment in Greater
Houston infrastructure in the company's nearly 160-year
history. The mission of this longer-term plan of action is to build
the most resilient coastal grid in the country by investing in a
smarter grid of the future that can better withstand a broad
spectrum of risks. The proposal, and the entire scope of these
actions will be outlined in a new system resiliency plan that is
expected to be filed with the Public Utility Commission of
Texas on or before January 31, 2025. The new system resiliency plan
will be shaped by feedback from customers, external experts, and
other stakeholders, including elected officials and local
agencies.
Addressing Temporary Emergency Generation Concerns
In
its letter to lawmakers, the company also committed to evaluating
the role of large-scale temporary emergency generation and
apologized to lawmakers for not communicating more clearly to them
about the cost and the limitations of such large-scale units as it
worked to find solutions and protect Texans from the devastating
impacts of extreme winter weather in the months following
Winter Storm Uri. CenterPoint is
undertaking a series of actions to address this issue, including a
proposal to forego approximately $110
million in profit, which is equivalent to more than half of
the equity earnings from the company's lease of temporary emergency
generation.
Reinforcing Commitment to Customer
Affordability
CenterPoint remains committed to
affordability, as reflected by the fact that customer rates that
pay for the Transmission & Distribution system have remained
relatively flat over the past 10 years. CenterPoint will continue
to prioritize affordability, including by conducting an independent
third-party assessment of the benefits and costs of these
longer-term investments.
Additional details on CenterPoint's actions are outlined in the
attached letter sent to elected officials today.
About CenterPoint Energy, Inc.
As the only
investor-owned electric and gas utility based in Texas, CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CNP) is
an energy delivery company with electric transmission and
distribution, power generation and natural gas distribution
operations that serve more than 7 million metered customers in
Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio and Texas. With approximately 9,000 employees,
CenterPoint Energy and its predecessor companies have been in
business for more than 150 years. For more information, visit
CenterPointEnergy.com.
Forward-looking Statements
This news release includes
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. When used in this news
release, the words "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "could,"
"estimate," "expect," "forecast," "goal," "intend," "may,"
"objective," "plan," "potential," "predict," "projection,"
"should," "target," "will" or other similar words are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking
statements, which include statements regarding our resiliency
investments, timing, forgoing profits and related matters, are
based upon assumptions of management which are believed to be
reasonable at the time made and are subject to significant risks
and uncertainties. Actual events and results may differ materially
from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements. Any statements in this news release regarding future
events that are not historical facts are forward-looking
statements. Each forward-looking statement contained in this news
release speaks only as of the date of this release. Important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those indicated by the provided forward-looking information include
risks and uncertainties relating to: (1) the impact of pandemics,
including the COVID-19 pandemic; (2) financial market conditions;
(3) general economic conditions; (4) the timing and impact of
future regulatory and legislative decisions; and (5) other factors,
risks and uncertainties discussed in CenterPoint Energy's Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 and CenterPoint's Quarterly
Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2024 and June
30, 2024 and other reports CenterPoint Energy or its
subsidiaries may file from time to time with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
For more information, contact:
Communications
Media.Relations@CenterPointEnergy.com
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SOURCE CenterPoint Energy
