Patrick said he has heard from businesses who are reluctant to move to Houston due to worries over how long it could take to get power back after major storms.
HOUSTON — In a surprise appearance, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick grilled members of the Public Utility Commission of Texas at a public hearing and workshop in Houston.
The lieutenant governor said he has heard from businesses who are reluctant to move to Houston due to worries over how long it could take to get power back after a major storm. He went on to ask that the CenterPoint Energy board recommend its CEO, Jason Wells, resign.
Patrick cited a previous hearing in which Wells said he wasn’t sure whether customers were being overcharged in a $800 million generator lease deal. The lieutenant governor called it a bad deal.
“Were they acting in the interest of the folks in their coverage area or are they interested in their bottom line? Why should the people of Texas pay 800 million for the terrible deal and a profit on top of it?” Patrick said.
Patrick accused the PUCT of playing a part in that bad deal going through and requested the commission audit Centerpoint on behalf of the customer.
“I’m not sure if we are overcharging. I don’t think we are overcharging. So they owe these people and all the people with Center Point a whole lot of money,” Patrick said. “They have to pay for it so they can make any terrible deal they want to make and the idea that the PUC said it was prudent is insulting because no business would ever make that deal unless somebody else was picking up the freight.”
CenterPoint drew heavy criticism over its response to Hurricane Beryl, which left much of the Houston area in the dark for weeks. Since the storm, the company has worked to improve the resilience of its power grid in Southeast Texas by installing and replacing power poles, trimming vegetation along powerlines and installing automated devices.
“I’ve seen Mr. Wells tell us all the things they are going to do. Why didn’t they do them before Beryl? Why didn’t they do them? Why are we now replacing the pole? Why are we now addressing vegetation?” Patrick said.
The PUCT responded by saying they’ve requested a previous resilience plan that was denied, but agreed to look into the lieutenant governor’s concerns.
In a statement to KHOU 11 News, Wells said the following in response to Patrick:
“I want to again acknowledge that we know our response to Hurricane Beryl was unacceptable. The number of outages was too high, the length was too long, and our communications did not meet our customers’ expectations. And for that, I want to personally apologize to each of you for the pain and frustration that we caused. I am determined to do better. We are determined to do better. We are working with urgency to re-earn our customers trust, and we will build the most resilient coastal grid in the country to avoid these kinds of incidents moving forward. … In terms of today’s comments and feedback from our customers and the public…I am saddened by the pain we heard our fellow Houstonians express. … And, I am even more resolute than ever in my determination to make sure this never happens again.”
Power Harris County was one of many community groups made up of Houstonians who lost power during recent storms.
Bobby Ramos said his sister was impacted in the worst way.
“After giving birth, one month after Beryl hits she loses two bags of milk pumped,” Ramos said.
What happened to her is why Ramos wants to see more support from PUC.
“We are pushing the envelope when it comes to renewable energy and solar power and partnering with Texas climate jobs,” Ramos said.