The May 16 derecho caused more than an estimated $5 billion in damages across the Greater Houston area, as previously reported by Community Impact.
What to know
The company filed its first phase of the plan with the the Public Utility Commission of Texas, according to the news release. The plan would save customers $50 million in interest charges on the $450 million in storm response cost.
In the release, the company said it proposed a recovery plan that would surcharge customers over $1 beginning in the second half of 2025 and then below $1 in 2026.
“Both today's filing and the next phase will undergo a thorough, open and transparent review process at the PUCT with a final decision expected in 2025,” Centerpoint officials said in a statement.
How we got here
At a July meeting, CenterPoint Energy senior executives discussed how Hurricane Beryl and derecho restoration costs came with a price tag costing the utility company an estimated $1.6 billion-$1.8 billion, as previously reported by Community Impact.
CenterPoint Energy executives previously laid out a three phase resiliency and communications plan while appearing in front of the state's public utility commissioners in Austin on July 25.
CenterPoint Energy CEO Jason Wells discussed how the company prepared for Beryl nine days before the Category 1 storm made landfall on July 8 as well as what recovery steps were enacted, including:
- Going from securing 3,000 mutual assistance crew members from locations outside of the projected path of the storm to over 15,000 crew members
- Coordinating with utility companies across Texas and the region for extra resources
- Restoring power to over one million customers within 48 hours
- Deploying mobile generators across the Greater Houston area to various critical facilities
The PUCT’s final investigation report will be delivered to Gov. Greg Abbott and the Legislature for review by Dec.1.
