Youâve finally chosen an electricity plan (hopefully with our help), and now youâre looking at your bill like:
âUhhh⌠who the heck is CenterPoint Energy, and why are they charging me $40 to exist?â
Welcome to Texas electricity, Wattling.
Letâs break it down so it all makes senseâand no, CenterPoint isnât trying to scam you. Theyâre just the power ninjas of Southeast Texas.
âĄCenterPoint = The Delivery Driver of Electricity
If your retail provider (like Gexa, Reliant, or whoever Watt Panda paired you with) is the restaurantâŚ
Then CenterPoint is the Uber Eats driver.
You didnât order directly from them, but you still need them to bring the juice to your home.
𧰠What Does CenterPoint Energy Do?
They donât sell electricity. Instead, they:
- Maintain the power lines, poles, and transformers
- Read your meter (to report usage to your provider)
- Restore power during outages
- Charge you delivery fees (TDU charges) that get bundled into your electric bill
So when the lights go out during a storm?
Itâs CenterPoint youâre callingânot your electricity provider.
đWhere Does CenterPoint Operate?
Short answer: Houston and nearby areas.
Long answer:
If you live in Harris County, parts of Fort Bend, Brazoria, Montgomery, Galveston, or surrounding zip codes, there’s a good chance CenterPoint is your utility company.
đ¸ Why Are Their Fees on My Bill?
Because even if you found a dreamy 10¢/kWh plan, CenterPoint still gets their cut for delivering that power. These are called TDU charges and are regulated by the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
đĄ Watt Panda always factors those charges into the plans we recommendâbecause what good is a cheap plan if the fees sneak up and bite you?
đ Can I Switch From CenterPoint to a Different Utility?
Nope. Sorry, cowboy.
Utility companies are location-based. You can’t shop around for them like you do with electricity providers. If you’re in CenterPoint territoryâyou stay in CenterPoint territory.
But good news: Watt Panda works with all providers in the area. So weâll find you the best plan no matter which delivery company youâre stuck with.
đź Watt Panda Pro Tip:
You never need to deal directly with CenterPoint unless:
- Your power goes out
- Your meter looks funky
- You want to report a downed line (donât touch it!)
Otherwise, let us handle the shopping. You handle the lounging.
đ TL;DR â CenterPoint Energy Cheat Sheet
| Category | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Role | Your electricity delivery company |
| Region | Greater Houston area |
| You chose them? | Nope. You inherited them by zip code |
| You pay them? | Yesâbut itâs included in your electric bill |
| Contact them? | Only if the lights go out or lines go down |
đĽ Need help decoding your CenterPoint-influenced bill?
Upload it to www.wattpanda.com and weâll break it downâno pandas harmed in the process.
