CenterPoint Energy remains vigilant and continues to assess progress of Invest 93L in northeastern Gulf

Rhea-AI Summary

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) is actively monitoring Invest 93L, a low-pressure system in the northeastern Gulf, with current projections indicating minimal impact on the Greater Houston service area beyond scattered thunderstorms. The company highlighted its Hurricane Beryl response improvements through the Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative (GHRI), including the installation of 26,000 storm-resilient poles, undergrounding of 400 miles of power lines, and deployment of 100+ weather stations.

The company has implemented comprehensive storm preparedness measures including vegetation management, coordination with officials, and enhanced customer communication systems. CenterPoint has also upgraded its Outage Tracker system and encourages customers to enroll in Power Alert Service for real-time updates.

Positive

• Installation of 26,000 stronger storm-resilient poles for extreme weather resistance
• Undergrounding of 400+ miles of power lines improving system resiliency
• Implementation of 5,150+ automated reliability devices for faster restoration
• Deployment of 100+ weather monitoring stations for enhanced storm tracking
• Launch of improved bilingual cloud-based Outage Tracker system

Negative

• None.

• Current projections indicate low potential development into a tropical depression or tropical storm
• No significant impacts expected in CenterPoint's Greater Houston service area beyond scattered thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday
• Customers and the public are encouraged to sign up for Power Alert Service to receive updates about friends, family and community locations

HOUSTON, July 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- CenterPoint Energy's Meteorology, Emergency Planning & Response, and Electric Operations teams continue to remain vigilant and track the low-pressure system designated as Invest 93L as it moves along the coast of the Florida Panhandle.

Current weather models continue to project a low likelihood of the storm developing into a tropical depression or low-end tropical storm. While there is still a possibility of heavy rains and isolated showers, overall impacts to CenterPoint Energy's Greater Houston service area are expected to remain minimal. Any weather impacts would likely be rain-related on Friday and Saturday.

Should the disturbance organize, gain strength, or if model forecasts align on a different track, CenterPoint will take further action.

"CenterPoint's meteorology team continues to monitor the system as it moves northward across the Florida Peninsula. Based on the latest data, the threat remains low for the Greater Houston area," said Matt Lanza, CenterPoint's Manager of Meteorology. "While we are not expecting major impacts, we will continue to assess the system and coordinate response efforts as necessary."

CenterPoint's summer storm readiness plan
The actions CenterPoint may take to prepare and respond to storms this summer include: 

• Mobilizing vegetation management workers: Deploying local and contract personnel to clear hazardous vegetation from power lines in the Greater Houston area ahead of storm landfall to prevent outages. 
• Coordinating with government officials: Providing regular updates to federal, state, county and city officials about our pre-storm activities and readiness posture. 
• Conducting outreach to critical care customers: Reaching out to identified Critical Care Residential and Chronic Condition Residential electric customers by email, phone or text.
• Sharing information and updates: Providing safety and preparedness information directly with customers via email, phone or text, across social media platforms and other channels to keep customers informed and prepared.
• Organizing additional call center staffing: Securing additional call center staff to handle a higher volume of calls during the storm and limit wait times.

Actions since Hurricane Beryl: Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative
Since launching GHRI following Hurricane Beryl last summer, CenterPoint executed a historic series of critical resiliency improvements across the company's 12-county Greater Houston area service territory. The company completed the following actions:

• Installed or replaced more than 26,000 stronger, more storm-resilient poles built to withstand extreme winds;
• Undergrounded more than 400 miles of power lines to improve overall resiliency;
• Installed more than 5,150 additional automated reliability devices and intelligent grid switching devices to reduce the impact of outages and improve restoration times;
• Cleared more than 6,000 miles of higher-risk vegetation near power lines to reduce storm-related outages;
• Installed more than 100 weather stations across our service territory to improve situational awareness and storm preparation;
• Donated 21 backup generators to critical facilities across the company's 12-county service area; and
• Launched a new and improved, cloud-based Outage Tracker to provide real-time updates on outages and restoration efforts in English and Spanish.

Important weather station facts and locations
CenterPoint has installed over 100 weather monitoring stations ahead of the Atlantic hurricane season. The weather monitoring stations were installed in strategic locations across CenterPoint's 12-county Greater Houston area electric service territory. The devices take measurements every 2-5 minutes, including humidity levels, wind speed, temperature, and rainfall.

For more information on CenterPoint's GHRI actions and improvements ahead of hurricane season, visit CenterPointEnergy.com/TakingAction.

Sign-up for Power Alert Service to get updates about family and friends
CenterPoint electric customers are encouraged to enroll in the company's Power Alert Service® to receive outage details, estimated restoration times and customer-specific restoration updates via phone call, text or email. Customers can add up to five additional email addresses or phone numbers to allow family and friends to receive outage information. 

CenterPoint encourages all customers to have a plan to stay safe
CenterPoint is encouraging all of its customers to prepare and have a plan to stay safe during this week's weather. Customers can get storm-related safety tips at CenterPointEnergy.com/ActionCenter — available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Customers can also stay up to date on outages with CenterPoint's new and improved, cloud-based Outage Tracker, now available in English and Spanish. The Outage Tracker is built to handle increased traffic during storms, is mobile-friendly, accessible, and allows customers to see outages by county, city and zip code.

For the latest updates, follow CenterPoint on X and visit CenterPointEnergy.com/ActionCenter. 

About CenterPoint Energy, Inc.
CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CNP) is a multi-state electric and natural gas delivery company serving approximately 7 million metered customers across Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas. The company is headquartered in Houston and is the only Texas-domiciled investor-owned utility. As of March 31, 2025, the company had approximately $44 billion in assets. With approximately 8,300 employees, CenterPoint Energy and its predecessor companies have been serving customers for more than 150 years. For more information, visit CenterPointEnergy.com.

For more information, contact:
Communications
Media.Relations@CenterPointEnergy.com 

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SOURCE CenterPoint Energy

FAQ

What is the expected impact of Invest 93L on CenterPoint Energy's Houston service area?

Current projections indicate minimal impact beyond scattered thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday, with low potential for development into a tropical depression or storm.

What improvements has CNP made since Hurricane Beryl through the Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative?

CNP installed 26,000 storm-resilient poles, undergrounded 400+ miles of power lines, added 5,150 automated reliability devices, and deployed 100+ weather stations across the service territory.

How can CenterPoint Energy customers stay informed about power outages?

Customers can enroll in Power Alert Service for outage updates via phone, text, or email, and use the new bilingual cloud-based Outage Tracker to monitor outages by county, city, and zip code.

What storm preparation measures is CenterPoint Energy taking for Invest 93L?

CNP is monitoring the system through its meteorology team, mobilizing vegetation management workers, coordinating with government officials, conducting outreach to critical care customers, and increasing call center staffing.

How many weather monitoring stations has CenterPoint Energy installed in the Greater Houston area?

CenterPoint has installed over 100 weather monitoring stations that measure humidity, wind speed, temperature, and rainfall every 2-5 minutes across its 12-county service territory.