Houston Lighting & Power Co. (HL&P), later named Reliant Energy HL&P/Entex, was the single power and utility company that served Greater Houston of the U.S. state of Texas. It was a subsidiary of Houston Industries (HI, NYSE: HOU),[1] which later was renamed to Reliant Energy (REI). HL&P had a service area of 5,000 square miles (13,000 km2). In 1998 in terms of kilowatt-hour sales it was the tenth-largest energy company in the United States.[2]
History
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It began operations in 1882.[3]
In 1999 Houston Industries changed its name to Reliant Energy.[4] Therefore HL&P was renamed Reliant Energy HL&P/Entex.
When the state of Texas deregulated the electricity market, HL&P was split into several companies.[5] In 2003 the company was split into Reliant Energy, Texas Genco, and CenterPoint Energy.[6] Texas Genco assumed control of the area's power plants.[5] CenterPoint assumed control of the poles and power lines. Reliant Energy took over the sales of electricity to businesses and individuals.[6]
Offices
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Before the dissolution of the company, its headquarters were shared with Houston Industries in the Houston Industries Plaza, now the CenterPoint Energy Plaza in Downtown Houston.[7]
The Bob Lanier Public Works Building in Downtown Houston, formerly the Electric Building,[8] was previously the HL&P office building. In 1999 the City of Houston, which had acquired the building, renovated it for $43 million to house city government offices.[9]
References
edit- ^ "What's New at HL&P" (). Houston Lighting & Power. February 20, 1997. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
- ^ "About Houston Industries" (). Houston Industries. February 8, 1998. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
- ^ "This is HL&P" (). Houston Lighting & Power. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
- ^ "Houston Industries takes new name." Houston Business Journal. February 2, 1999. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
- ^ a b "Exelon bids for major Texas power producer NRG." Houston Chronicle. October 20, 2008. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "The plants were originally part of the former Houston Lighting & Power, the integrated utility that served the Houston area until it was broken up into three separate companies as the state deregulated its power markets."
- ^ a b Fowler, Tom. "8 Houston power plants to be sold to NRG." Houston Chronicle. October 2, 2005. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
- ^ "0000950129-97-001088.txt : 19970320" (Archive). Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "Houston Industries Incorporated and Houston Lighting & Power Company Houston Industries Plaza 1111 Louisiana, 47th Floor Houston, TX 77002-5231"
- ^ Chapman, Betty T. "Houston historical treasures abound in modern architecture." Houston Business Journal. April 6, 2012. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "Other notable skyscrapers of the period are the American General Building at 2727 Allen Parkway and the Electric Building at 611 Walker, now Bob Lanier Public Works Building."
- ^ "Development Downtown Houston" (Archive). CentralHouston. p. 14/17. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "1999 Bob Lanier Building 611 Walker. City of Houston conversion of the former Houston Lighting & Power office building into offices for the Public Works and Engineering Department, Planning Department and other functions. Includes new tunnel links. Developer: City of Houston. Estimated cost: $43 million."
Further reading
edit- "Parent firms of HL&P and Entex to merge." Houston Chronicle.
- "Houston Industries bid looks to the future." Houston Chronicle.
- "NorAm played it safe to be #3 gas firm." Houston Chronicle.
External links
edit- Houston Lighting & Power at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
- Houston Industries Incorporated at the Wayback Machine (archive index)