Restaurants in Houston and nearby regions on July 15 filed a class action lawsuit, collectively seeking over $100 million, against U.S. power producer CenterPoint Energy Inc. for lack of power following Hurricane Beryl.
About 2.3 million homes and businesses of CenterPoint's customers lost power last week after Hurricane Beryl ripped out trees and knocked down electricity infrastructure. About 130,000 continued to remain without power on Tuesday, eight days after the hurricane.
The extent of the outages and the long restoration time periods frustrated Texans, who questioned CenterPoint's preparedness to tackle damages from the storm. CenterPoint is the state's largest power provider.
The restaurants include Trattoria Sofia, B.B. Lemon, The Annie Cafe & Bar and Killen's, according to the class action petition.
Tony Buzbee, a lawyer who ran for Houston city council last year, said in an Instagram post the case makes claims for negligence and gross negligence for "CenterPoint's repeated failure to do what any reasonable and competent electricity provider would do and should do."
The case alleges that CenterPoint has failed for years to invest in infrastructure, to inspect, maintain and upgrade equipment and to train personnel.
It also alleges that the utility has failed to have a competent storm plan in place and failed to adequately respond to the storm once it impacted the area, Buzbee said.
CenterPoint said it remains focused on restoration efforts, adding that the company does not comment on potential litigation.
Recommended Reading
Alliance Resource Partners Adds More Mineral Interests in 4Q
2025-02-05 - Alliance Resource Partners closed on $9.6 million in acquisitions in the fourth quarter, adding to a portfolio of nearly 70,000 net royalty acres that are majority centered in the Midland and Delaware basins.
Pinnacle Midstream Execs Form Energy Spectrum-Backed Renegade
2025-02-03 - Renegade Infrastructure, led by Permian-centric Pinnacle Midstream developers Drew Ward and Jason Tanous, have received a capital commitment from Energy Spectrum Partners.
Devon Energy Announces Changes to Executive Leadership Team
2025-01-13 - Among personnel moves, Devon Energy announced John Raines and Trey Lowe have been promoted to senior vice president roles.
The Private Equity Puzzle: Rebuilding Portfolios After M&A Craze
2025-01-28 - In the Haynesville, Delaware and Utica, Post Oak Energy Capital is supporting companies determined to make a profitable footprint.
Mach Prices Common Units, Closes Flycatcher Deal
2025-02-06 - Mach Natural Resources priced a public offering of common units following the close of $29.8 million of assets near its current holdings in the Ardmore Basin on Jan. 31.
Comments
Add new comment
This conversation is moderated according to Hart Energy community rules. Please read the rules before joining the discussion. If you’re experiencing any technical problems, please contact our customer care team.