AUSTIN, Texas – As scrutiny and accountability remain at the forefront against CenterPoint Energy, the energy giant’s CEO testified before a special senate committee in Austin Monday morning for its response to Hurricane Beryl.
SEE ALSO: ‘We make no excuses:’ CenterPoint CEO sends letter to customers apologizing over Beryl response
KPRC 2 reporter Rilwan Balogun was in the room from Austin to share what we can expect.
The hearing began at 10 a.m. and the state livestreamed it, which you can find by clicking here.
The special committee was created by Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick days after Beryl roared through SE Texas, knocking out power to over 2 million CenterPoint customers.
Some didn’t get their power back for more than a week and were forced to live in dangerously hot conditions inside their homes with no air conditioning, while temperatures outside soared into the 90s. Many of them lost their lives to heat illness.
Centerpoint’s CEO Jason Wells’ testimony comes just a week after his meeting with the Texas Public Utility Committee (PUC) where he apologized to Houstonians.
“Let me begin by being very clear: our response to the impacts of Hurricane Beryl, including our communications, did not meet the high standard we expect of ourselves, let alone what the public expects of us,” Wells said.
RELATED: ‘Talk is cheap’: Outage victims react to CenterPoint’s apologies and promises to do better
Monday, Wells, as he did last week, announced initial action plans to increase resiliency. For starters, CenterPoint has assured the public it will be introducing a new and improved online outage tracker by August 1.
“I take accountability for those areas where we fell short of our customer’s expectations, and I want to apologize for the frustration our customers and their families experienced as a result. There are no excuses. We will do better. We will improve. And we will act with a greater sense of urgency,” Wells said. “Hurricane Beryl impacted so many lives, and I want to express my condolences to the families and friends who lost loved ones.”
CenterPoint’s plan of action, which was initially announced during a hearing with the Public Utility Commission of Texas on Thursday, July 25, reflects more than 40 initial actions that the company is taking immediately and over the intermediate- and long-term, including:
- Resiliency Investments: By accelerating the adoption of the latest construction standards, retrofitting existing assets on an accelerated basis, and using predictive modeling, AI and other advanced technologies, CenterPoint will harden its distribution system and speed restoration. The company will also take action to protect its electrical assets by nearly doubling the size of its vegetation management crews and targeting higher-risk vegetation to address the number one cause of damage and outages in Hurricane Beryl.
- Best-in-Class Customer Communications: To ensure customers have the information they need when they need it, CenterPoint will launch a new and more customer-oriented outage tracker by August 1. This online tool will provide better and more complete information during storms and is designed to handle increased demand during such events.
- Strengthened Partnerships: Effective emergency preparedness and response requires close coordination with government officials. CenterPoint will hire a seasoned emergency response leader to help the company rapidly accelerate its planning capabilities and develop close community partnerships to ease the burden of storm events on more vulnerable communities.
Governor Greg Abbott has joined several leaders and members of the public in criticizing the company’s response to the storm.
MORE: ‘Several levers he can use’: Does Gov. Greg Abbott really have power over CenterPoint Energy?
John Whitmire also returned to the capitol not as the dean of the senate this time, but as Houston’s mayor to discuss how his team responded.
He testified in front of the committee along with County Judges from Montgomery County and Matagorda along with heads of the American Electric Power Texas, Entergy Texas, Jackson Electric Cooperative, Jasper-Newton Electric Cooperative, and Texas-New Mexico Power.
