CenterPoint Energy
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2009) |
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| Company type | Public (NYSE: CNP) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Utilities |
| Founded | 1882 |
| Headquarters | CenterPoint Energy Tower Downtown Houston, Texas, USA |
Key people | David M. McClanahan, CEO & President |
| Revenue |  $9.623 billion USD (2007) |
| $1.185 billion USD (2007) | |
| $399 million USD (2007) | |
Number of employees | 8,568 (2007) |
| Website | www.centerpointenergy.com |
CenterPoint Energy (NYSE: CNP) is a Fortune 500 electric and natural gas utility serving several markets in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. It was formerly known as Reliant Energy (from which it is now separated), NorAm Energy, Houston Industries, and HL&P. The company is headquartered in the CenterPoint Energy Tower at 1111 Louisiana Street in Downtown Houston.[1][2] Some of its notable subscribers include Retail Electric Providers (REPs), such as Reliant Energy, Dynowatt, Texas Power, Bounce Energy, MXenergy, Direct Energy, Stream Energy, First Texas Energy Corporation, Gexa Energy and Cirro Energy.
History
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Until December 15, 2004, CenterPoint Energy and its predecessors operated in its various markets under these names; they were used separately prior to Reliant Energy, and later in conjunction with the Reliant Energy and CenterPoint Energy names:
- Minnegasco (Natural gas throughout parts of Minnesota)
- Houston Lighting and Power (or HL&P) Houston-Galveston electric provider
- Entex (Natural gas throughout South and East Texas, Southern Louisiana and Mississippi)
- Arkla (Natural gas throughout Northern Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arkansas)
- Jessica Kulesa works here.
In late 2004, four private equity firms—the Texas Pacific Group, the Blackstone Group, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and Hellman & Friedman—combined forces to purchase Texas Genco from Centerpoint. Later in 2006, Texas Genco was sold to NRG Energy of Princeton, N.J.
Hurricane Ike Power Outage
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In September 2008, CenterPoint Energy suffered great disruption of service in the Greater Houston Area, wiping out 2.1 million of CenterPoint Energy's 2.26 million clients' electricity. This was the largest power outage in the company's 130 year history, as well as the largest in the state's history.
Later in March 2009, the company’s five-year smart meter deployment began, delivering enhanced smart meter functionality to Retail Electric Providers (REPs).
See also
References
- ^ "Contact Information." CenterPoint Energy. Retrieved on January 14, 2009.
- ^ "CenterPoint Energy Tower." Berger Iron Works. Retrieved on January 14, 2009.