CenterPoint profit rises, boosts 10-year spending plan to $65.5 billion

By Dharna Bafna

Feb 19 (Reuters) - U.S. utility CenterPoint Energy CNP.N posted a 6.4% rise in fourth-quarter profit on Thursday, and raised its 10-year capital plan as electricity demand climbs across its Houston service territory.

Shares of the company rose nearly 2% in early trading.

Utilities are pouring billions of dollars into capital spending as they field massive requests for new power capacity from Big Tech firms scouring for viable locations for data centers capable of handling complex AI-related tasks.

CenterPoint said it now expects to meet its projected 50% increase in peak power load by 2029, two years ahead of its prior forecast of 2031. It plans to deliver about 10 gigawatts of new load by the end of the decade.

To support the growth, the company raised its 2026–2035 capital plan by $500 million to about $65.5 billion.

CenterPoint also expects at least $10 billion in incremental capital opportunities, including electric transmission, smart meter deployment and data center-related investments in Indiana.

The company expects to keep rates flat through 2028 as incremental load spreads fixed costs across a wider customer base, CEO Jason Wells said on a call.

"The more that we bring, these large projects into our region, they not only help with the tax base in this region...they help us keep our rates affordable," Wells said.

The ballooning electricity demand from data centers is pushing power consumption to record highs and prompting utilities to ramp up spending on infrastructure.

The Houston, Texas-based company posted a profit of $264 million for the three months ended December 31, up from $248 million, the prior year.

On an adjusted basis, the profit of 45 cents met the average of analysts' expectations, according to data combined by LSEG.

The company also reaffirmed its 2026 adjusted profit of $1.89 to $1.91 per share.