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CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) said Friday that it may take "several days" or longer to return power to customers in Houston and east Texas smacked by thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds that killed at least four people; the stock closed +0.4%.
CenterPoint (CNP) said the severe weather caused "extensive damage" to its transmission and distribution electric systems, resulting in electric service interruptions peaking at nearly 922K customers; the utility serves ~2.6M customers in the Houston area.
More than 785K people reportedly were without power in the Houston area and another 116K without power in Louisiana as of late Friday morning.
Broken glass, tree branches and insulation from the inside of buildings cluttered downtown streets as crews began clean-up efforts.
Several Texas oil refineries reported interruptions to their operations, including Chevron's (CVX) 115K bbl/day Pasadena refinery, which sustained minor damage during the storm, according to Dow Jones.
Exxon Mobil (XOM) said early Friday there were no significant impacts from the storm at its 384K bbl/day Beaumont refinery and 588K bbl/day Baytown refinery.
In the Texas Panhandle, Valero (VLO) said service was interrupted at its 240K bbl/day McKee refinery after a sudden feed disruption required gas venting and flaring to minimize emissions.
Phillips 66 (PSX) said its 286K bbl/day Sweeny and 155K bbl/day Borger plants in Texas were not impacted by the storm.
The status of Marathon Petroleum's (MPC) 625K bbl/day Galveston Bay, Texas, and 627K bbl/day Garyville, Louisiana, refineries was not known.