CenterPoint Energy continues to actively monitor potentially severe cold weather projected to impact parts of the company's service territories in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana and Ohio over the coming days.
CenterPoint has taken a series of proactive pre-winter preparedness actions to strengthen and winterize its electric and natural gas infrastructure across its multiple states, as well as inspect and test cold-weather critical equipment ahead of potential severe cold weather. The company has a cold weather action plan in place, based on forecasts that are continually changing, and is proactively leaning in to be prepared to respond to potential service issues as safely and as quickly as possible, with crews stationed across the communities it serves.
"We're continuing to monitor the severe cold weather expected across several of the communities we serve in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana and Ohio. We're keeping a particularly close watch on the potential for a major winter storm that could impact Indiana and Ohio over the weekend and into next week as well as potential for severe weather in the Greater Houston area starting Sunday and into next week. We will continue to actively monitor the models for any severe weather and urge our customers to stay alert in anticipation of quickly changing weather conditions," said Matt Lanza, CenterPoint's Meteorology Manager and member of CenterPoint's Emergency Preparedness and Response team.
The current weather forecast for Indiana predicts the chance for significant ice accumulation, which could impact power lines. Ice accumulation of one-fourth of an inch or more can cause power lines to bow and potentially break. The company reminds customers and community members to always assume downed lines or wires are energized and potentially dangerous if contacted. Stay at least 35 feet away from downed power lines or fallen wires and keep your distance from objects touching downed lines (tree limbs, vehicles, fences, etc.). Immediately report downed power lines to CenterPoint.
Critical winter electric and gas readiness actions taken in the Greater Houston area
CenterPoint Texas has submitted its annual declarations of winter readiness to both the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and the Railroad Commission of Texas. These declarations demonstrate that CenterPoint has completed the regulatory requirements that were adopted in 2021 to prepare electric and natural gas infrastructure for winter storms and extreme cold weather.
The pre-winter safety and readiness actions taken by CenterPoint include:
- Inspecting and testing critical equipment, including all 270 substations, to prepare for high demand and cold temperatures;
- Hardening electric and natural gas infrastructure across the Greater Houston area, including installing heaters and devices to prevent ice damage or buildup;
- Maintaining freeze protection equipment and enclosures for cold-weather critical components;
- Repairing damaged or degraded thermal insulation and water-proofing materials; and
- Conducting emergency training for hundreds of operational personnel and contractors to prepare for, mitigate and respond to the impacts of severe winter weather.
Natural gas system preparedness in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi
CenterPoint strives to provide natural gas service safely and reliably to its customers and initiates winter preparedness strategies to help protect its natural gas system. These include:
- Positioning Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) trucks to be deployed to supplement the natural gas system, if needed.
- Reinforcing reliability by validating that all station set points are aligned with their cold weather settings and have technicians on standby coordinating closely with engineering and natural gas control.
- Coordinating and communicating with the Railroad Commission of Texas to identify and ensure operations of critical gas infrastructure for natural gas reliability.
Winter electric and gas preparedness actions in Indiana and Ohio
CenterPoint regularly invests in the safety, reliability and resiliency of its electric and natural gas systems in Indiana and Ohio to continue serving customers year-round and prepare for times of peak demand, including winter. Efforts include:
- In Southwest Indiana, we have invested in the resiliency of its electric power system by upgrading power poles and power lines for safe, reliable service to customers;
- Reducing customer electric outage duration through smart meter technology and distribution automation devices which work together to detect and restore customer outages automatically in Southwest Indiana;
- Replacing pipelines such as bare steel and cast-iron pipes to modern materials and installing new lines with modern construction methods across our service territory; and
"We know how important it is for homes and businesses to have the electric and natural gas service they expect and deserve. That is why we are preparing now to respond to any potential impacts to our system from the forecasted colder temperatures, so we can safely and quickly restore service to any impacted customers. Our teams remain alert and will continue monitoring the potential severe weather approaching several of the regions we serve. Even as we continue to coordinate with our emergency partners and take steps to prepare, we strongly urge our customers to remain weather aware and have an emergency plan in place," said Richard Leger, CenterPoint's Senior Vice President of Gas Operations.
