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Background and Basis of Presentation (Policies) | 9 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2025
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract] |
Basis of Presentation | Basis of Presentation. Included in this combined Form 10-Q are the Interim Condensed Financial Statements of the Registrants. The Interim Condensed Financial Statements, which omit certain financial statement disclosures, are unaudited and should be read with the Registrants’ financial statements included in the Registrants’ combined 2024 Form 10-K. The Combined Notes to Interim Condensed Financial Statements apply to all Registrants and specific references to Houston Electric and CERC herein also pertain to CenterPoint Energy, unless otherwise indicated. The Interim Condensed Financial Statements reflect all normal and recurring adjustments that are, in the opinion of management, necessary to present fairly the financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the respective periods. Amounts reported in the Condensed Statements of Consolidated Income are not necessarily indicative of amounts expected for a full-year period due to the effects of, among other things, (a) seasonal fluctuations in demand for energy, (b) changes in energy commodity prices and the impact of tariffs, (c) timing of maintenance and other expenditures and (d) acquisitions and dispositions of businesses, assets and other interests. Background. CenterPoint Energy is a public utility holding company. CenterPoint Energy’s operating subsidiaries own and operate electric transmission, distribution and generation facilities and natural gas distribution systems. The preparation of the Registrants’ financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Principles of Consolidation | Principles of Consolidation. The accompanying Interim Condensed Financial Statements have been prepared in conformity with GAAP. The accounts of the Registrants and their wholly-owned and majority-owned and controlled subsidiaries are included in the Interim Condensed Financial Statements. All intercompany transactions and balances are eliminated in consolidation; however, intercompany profits have not been eliminated when such amounts are probable of recovery under the affiliates’ rate regulation process. As of September 30, 2025, CenterPoint Energy, Houston Electric and SIGECO had VIEs including Transition Bond Company IV, Restoration Bond Company II and the SIGECO Securitization Subsidiary, which are consolidated. The consolidated VIEs are wholly-owned, bankruptcy-remote, special purpose entities that were formed solely for the purpose of securitizing transition property or system restoration property or facilitating the securitization financing of qualified costs. CenterPoint Energy, through SIGECO, has a controlling financial interest in the SIGECO Securitization Subsidiary and is its primary beneficiary. Houston Electric has a controlling financial interest in each of the Bond Companies and is the primary beneficiary of each of the Bond Companies. Creditors of CenterPoint Energy, Houston Electric and SIGECO have no recourse to any assets or revenues of the Bond Companies or the SIGECO Securitization Subsidiary, as applicable. The Securitization Bonds issued by these VIEs are payable only from and secured by transition property, system restoration property or securitization property, as applicable, and the bondholders have no recourse to the general credit of CenterPoint Energy, Houston Electric or SIGECO. For further information, see Note 6.
Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash | Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash The table below provides a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash reported in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets to the amount reported in the Condensed Statements of Consolidated Cash Flows:
| September 30, 2025 |  | December 31, 2024
| CenterPoint Energy |  | Houston Electric |  | CERC |  | CenterPoint Energy |  | Houston Electric |  | CERC
| (in millions)
Cash and cash equivalents (1) | $ | 37 |  |  | $ | 17 |  |  | $ | — |  |  | $ | 24 |  |  | $ | 14 |  |  | $ | 2 |
Restricted cash included in Prepaid expenses and other current assets (2) | 8 |  |  | 2 |  |  | — |  |  | 6 |  |  | — |  |  | — |
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash shown in Condensed Statements of Consolidated Cash Flows | $ | 45 |  |  | $ | 19 |  |  | $ | — |  |  | $ | 30 |  |  | $ | 14 |  |  | $ | 2 |
(1)Cash and cash equivalents related to VIEs as of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 included $31 million and $21 million, respectively, at CenterPoint Energy and $15 million and $14 million, respectively, at Houston Electric. (2)Restricted cash primarily related to accounts established by CenterPoint Energy in connection with the issuance of the Securitization Bonds to collateralize the Securitization Bonds that were issued in these financing transactions. These restricted cash accounts are not available for withdrawal until the maturity of the Securitization Bonds.
Goodwill | Goodwill (CenterPoint Energy and CERC) CenterPoint Energy and CERC perform goodwill impairment tests at least annually and evaluate goodwill when events or changes in circumstances indicate that its carrying value may not be recoverable. Goodwill is evaluated for impairment by performing a qualitative assessment or using a quantitative test. If we choose to perform a qualitative assessment and determine it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, the quantitative test is then performed; otherwise, no further testing is required. The quantitative test, if required, is performed by comparing the fair value of each reporting unit with the carrying amount of the reporting unit, including goodwill. The estimated fair value of the reporting unit is primarily determined based on an income approach or a weighted combination of income and market approaches. When the carrying amount is in excess of the estimated fair value of the reporting unit, the excess amount is recorded as an impairment charge, not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill. CenterPoint Energy and CERC performed their annual goodwill impairment tests in the third quarter of 2025 and determined that no goodwill impairment charge was required for any reporting unit as a result of those tests.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements | Recent Accounting Pronouncements In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures (“ASU 2023-09”). This ASU enhances the transparency of income tax disclosures related to rate reconciliation and income taxes. ASU 2023-09 is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2024. The Registrants plan to adopt this ASU on December 31, 2025, on a retrospective basis. The adoption of this ASU is not expected to have an impact on our consolidated financial statements; however, it is expected to result in additional footnote disclosures. In November 2024, the FASB issued ASU 2024-03, Income Statement—Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220): Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (“ASU 2024-03”). This ASU improves disclosure of a public business entity’s expense by requiring disaggregated disclosure of expenses in commonly presented expense captions. ASU 2024-03 is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2026, and for interim periods beginning after December 15, 2027. Early adoption is permitted. The Registrants are currently evaluating the impact of this ASU on their respective consolidated financial statements. In September 2025, the FASB issued ASU 2025-06, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other—Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Targeted Improvements to the Accounting for Internal-Use Software (“ASU 2025-06”). This ASU modernizes the accounting for software costs to adapt to an incremental and iterative software development method. ASU 2025-06 is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2027, and may be applied using a prospective, modified prospective or retrospective transition approach. The Registrants are currently evaluating the impact of this ASU on their respective consolidated financial statements. Management believes that all other recently adopted and recently issued accounting standards that are not yet effective will not have a material impact on the Registrants’ financial position, results of operations or cash flows upon adoption.
Fair Value Measurements | Assets and liabilities that are recorded at fair value in the Registrants’ Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets are categorized based upon the level of judgment associated with the inputs used to measure their value. Hierarchical levels, as defined below and directly related to the amount of subjectivity associated with the inputs to fair valuations of these assets and liabilities, are as follows: Level 1: Inputs are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities at the measurement date. The types of assets carried at Level 1 fair value generally are exchange-traded derivatives and equity securities. Level 2: Inputs, other than quoted prices included in Level 1, are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. Level 2 inputs include quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets and inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability. Fair value assets and liabilities that are generally included in this category are derivatives with fair values based on inputs from actively quoted markets. A market approach is utilized to value the Registrants’ Level 2 interest rate derivative assets or liabilities and natural gas derivative assets or liabilities. CenterPoint Energy’s Level 2 indexed debt securities derivative is valued using an option model and a discounted cash flow model, which uses projected dividends on the ZENS-Related Securities and a discount rate as observable inputs. Level 3: Inputs are unobservable for the asset or liability, and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the asset or liability. Unobservable inputs reflect the Registrants’ judgments about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability since limited market data exists. The Registrants develop these inputs based on the best information available, including the Registrants’ own data. The Registrants determine the appropriate level for each financial asset and liability on a quarterly basis and recognize transfers between levels at the end of the reporting period. As of September 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the Registrants did not have any assets or liabilities classified as Level 3.

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