CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) said Friday it plans to increase its 10-year capital plan to $43 billion through 2030, with a focus on additional investments in grid reliability and modernization.
CEO David Lesar told analysts on an earnings call that the company has added $2.3 billion to the capex plan and identified an additional $3 billion of potential opportunities that will be folded in “when we believe we can operationally execute it, efficiently fund it, and minimize the regulatory lag associated in recovering it.”
The Houston-based utility reported fourth-quarter earnings of $122 million ($0.19/share) and year-end earnings of $1.01 billion ($1.59/share), compared to $641 million ($1.01/share) and $1.39 billion ($2.28/share) for the same periods in the previous year.
“We continue to execute well; 2022 was truly an exciting and productive year,” Lesar said during the call. “We are confident that this strong momentum will continue into the new year.”
He noted it was the 11th straight quarter CenterPoint has exceeded or met its own expectations for earnings guidance. Lesar has been CEO for the last 10 of those quarters.
The infrastructure investment will be needed. Texas has added nearly 1.1 million jobs since the COVID-19 recession, Lesar said. Houston, CenterPoint’s primary electric service region, has added 179,000 jobs and increased its population by almost 300,000 to nearly 7 million, he said.
“This is now like adding a city the size of Irvine, Calif., to our footprint in just one year,” Lesar said. “We see this trend continuing as the Texas miracle keeps humming along.
“This growth is just one of the reasons we believe we are uniquely positioned as a company.”
The company’s share price closed at $29.22 Friday, a gain of 16 cents on the day.
Entergy Takes Hit from Grand Gulf
Entergy (NYSE:ETR) on Thursday reported earnings of $106 million ($0.51/share) for the quarter and $1.1 billion ($5.37/share) for the year. That compared to $259 million ($1.28/share) for 2021’s fourth quarter and $1.12 billion ($5.54/share) for the year.
The results included a $551 million charge, $413 million after tax, for System Energy Resources Inc. (SERI), the Entergy subsidiary that owns the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station in Mississippi. FERC in December issued two orders involving the plant’s customer rate impacts. The orders addressed a series of uncertain tax positions that SERI took.
The New Orleans-based company has begun issuing refunds to ratepayers. It reached a $300 million settlement with the Mississippi Public Service Commission last June.
“We still believe that a global settlement with the remaining retail regulators on terms similar to the agreement with the MPSC would be in the best interest of all parties,” Entergy CEO Drew Marsh told financial analysts during the quarterly conference call. “It would resolve disruptive litigation uncertainty for SERI and our stakeholders, including our regulators, accelerate meaningful value to customers, avoid costly and unnecessary third-party litigation fees and allow all parties to move forward with fewer distractions.”
Entergy’s earnings exceeded Zacks Investment Research projections of $0.45/share. Entergy’s share price ended the week at $109.42, up $1.87 from Wednesday’s close.
