CenterPoint Energy raises investment plan by $1.2bn as data center load pipeline grows

Texas utility CenterPoint Energy has submitted more than 17GW of large-load projects through the Electric Reliability Council of Texas's (ERCOT) Batch Zero process, with approximately 14GW expected to be eligible as base load or studied load. The development underscores the accelerating pace of data center-driven electricity demand in the state, which has become a primary growth engine for the utility's long-term planning.

In its latest earnings report, the utility said the growth was driven largely by data center demand, prompting it to increase its ten-year capital investment plan by $1.2 billion to $66.7bn. The revised plan reflects a significant upward revision in load forecasts, as the company positions itself to serve a wave of hyperscale and enterprise data center customers across the Greater Houston area and beyond.

The Batch Zero process is ERCOT's new interconnection process for large electricity users, covering any facility with a capacity of 75MW or more. Instead of studying requests one by one, the process replaces that with a single, system-wide study that evaluates all qualifying large loads together in one batch. This streamlined approach is designed to accelerate the interconnection timeline for large-scale projects, a critical factor as data center developers race to secure power capacity.

"As part of our industry's unprecedented and dynamic era of growth, our teams are converting that momentum into tangible results for our customers, large businesses seeking new connections, and our shareholders," said Jason Wells, chair, president, and CEO of CenterPoint. Wells added that the 14GW of eligible base or studied load projected by 2031 "would be [more than] a 65 percent increase from our current system peak demand."

The increased capital plan reflects the growth of CenterPoint's data center and industrial load forecasts this year. In April, the company said it expected to energize 8GW of data center load in the Greater Houston area by 2029, with 3.5GW already under construction at the time. That forecast was accompanied by more than 12GW of "firmly committed" industrial load, up 63 percent from the previous quarter, signaling robust demand from both digital infrastructure and traditional industrial sectors.

Texas is fast becoming the go-to destination for new data center developments, driven by a combination of available land, favorable business conditions, and a competitive energy market. ERCOT has projected that statewide electricity demand could approach 368GW by 2032, driven largely by AI and data center load. The scale of this projected growth is reshaping how utilities and grid operators plan for the future, with interconnection reform and capital investment emerging as top priorities.

Houston-based CenterPoint provides electric and natural gas to customers across Indiana, Ohio, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, and Texas. The company's expanded investment plan signals a broader trend among U.S. utilities that are increasingly aligning their infrastructure strategies with the rapid expansion of the data center industry, which shows no signs of slowing down as AI workloads continue to proliferate.