CenterPoint Energy Gas Bill Explained: Charges & Choosing a Supplier
CenterPoint Energy delivers natural gas across parts of several states, including Texas, Minnesota, Indiana, and Ohio, and the delivery charge on your bill is regulated no matter where you're located. Whether you can also shop a competitive gas marketer depends entirely on your specific territory: CenterPoint's Ohio service area runs a regulator-supervised Natural Gas Choice program overseen by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), where customers pick a certified marketer to supply the gas itself while CenterPoint keeps delivering it.
Delivery vs. supply, and why it depends on your territory
Every CenterPoint Energy gas bill includes a delivery charge — covering the pipelines, meters, and emergency response infrastructure CenterPoint owns and maintains in that area — which stays the same no matter who supplies the gas. What differs by state and utility territory is whether a customer can also choose the supply side competitively. Retail gas choice isn't uniform across every state CenterPoint operates in; it exists where the state's utility regulator has specifically set up a choice program and certified marketers to participate.
Ohio's Natural Gas Choice program
In CenterPoint Energy's Ohio service territory, customers can participate in Natural Gas Choice, a program regulated by PUCO that lets customers select a certified competitive marketer instead of buying gas supply directly from CenterPoint. PUCO publishes an Apples to Apples comparison chart at its Energy Choice Ohio site specifically for CenterPoint's territory, listing current marketer offers by rate type and contract length so customers can compare them side by side with CenterPoint's own standard supply price.
Choosing a marketer is not mandatory
Customers in a Natural Gas Choice territory aren't required to select a marketer. Anyone who doesn't choose one is automatically served under CenterPoint's standard supply service, which remains a regulated default — a genuinely safe, no-action-required fallback rather than a rate designed to be uncompetitive. Shopping is worthwhile mainly when a marketer's offer, once compared through PUCO's Apples to Apples tool, actually beats the standard rate on price or on other contract terms a business cares about, like a fixed rate through a specific season.
What this means for a business
Commercial and industrial gas customers in a CenterPoint Choice territory can shop certified marketers the same way residential customers do, though larger commercial accounts often see usage-tiered supply pricing or longer contract terms than a typical residential offer. Before signing, it's worth comparing a marketer's quoted commercial rate against CenterPoint's current standard supply price on PUCO's comparison chart, and reading the contract length and any early termination or automatic-renewal provisions the same way you would for a competitive electricity contract.
Frequently asked questions
Does CenterPoint Energy still deliver my gas if I choose a marketer?
Yes. In territories with a gas choice program, CenterPoint Energy continues to own and maintain the pipelines, read the meter, and handle emergency response no matter which certified marketer bills you for the gas itself.
Where does CenterPoint Energy offer natural gas choice?
CenterPoint Energy's Ohio service territory offers a regulator-run Natural Gas Choice program, overseen by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), where customers can select a certified competitive marketer instead of using CenterPoint's standard gas supply.
Is choosing a gas marketer mandatory for CenterPoint Energy customers?
No. Customers who don't choose a competitive marketer stay on CenterPoint's standard supply service, which remains a regulated, no-action-required default option.
See this on your own bill
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