CenterPoint Energy has confirmed it will file a general rate case of behalf of its Houston electric utility on March 9.
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CenterPoint Energy has confirmed it will file a general rate case of behalf of its Houston electric utility on March 9. The request in that filing likely will be smaller than any request from any previous general rate case filing by CenterPoint Electric since 1975, according to officials.
The company said it won’t seek a larger increase because of revenues it already receives from various interim rate mechanisms — such as the Distribution Cost Recovery Factor — that allow for the recovery of capital expenditures on an ongoing basis. CenterPoint said it expects the March rate case to settle by mid-summer.
Speaking during a February 20 call with investment analysts, company officials also confirmed plans to sell CenterPoint’s gas utility holdings in Mississippi and Louisiana. Officials said the $1 billion in proceeds from those sales will provide additional balance sheet support, including for its operations in Texas. However, despite the loss of future rate revenues from those holdings, CenterPoint nonetheless expects to continue delivering increased earnings to investors. Officials attributed this expected earnings growth to revenue recovery from increased capital spending, from reductions in operations and maintenance expenses, and from interim rate cases.
Other details from the call with investment analysts include:
- The company has increased its 10-year capital spending plans by $600 million, bringing the total through 2030 to $44.5 billion.
- CenterPoint made $600 million in capital expenditures on its electric holdings during the fourth quarter of 2023, bringing the fiscal year total to $2.7 billion. It projects a total of $29 billion in spending for that sector for the 10 years ending in 2030.
- CenterPoint made $300 million in capital expenditures on its natural gas holdings during the fourth quarter of 2023, bringing the fiscal year total for that sector to $1.7 billion. It projects a total of $15.3 billion spending for that sector for the 10 years ending in 2030.
- The adoption of House Bill 2555 by the Texas Legislature in 2023 will provide added support for CenterPoint’s continued capital expenditures by its Houston-based electric utility. The legislation calls for transmission and distribution system resiliency planning by electric utilities and allows for cost recovery for resiliency investments. The PUC finalized rulemaking for HB 2555 in January.
- Since 2020, CenterPoint has achieved a two percent reduction in operations and maintenance spending.
CenterPoint reported a 14 percent increase in earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2023, as compared to the same quarter in 2022.
About CenterPoint
CenterPoint Energy 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. As of December 31, 2022, the company owned approximately $38 billion in assets, and employed approximately 9,000 people.
More information about the company’s earnings call, including an associated presentation, can be found at https://investors.centerpointenergy.com/events.