Texas Electric Choice: Wires Company vs. Retail Provider

Texas works differently

In most choice states, the utility name on the bill tells you everything. Texas is different. In the deregulated parts of the state, two companies are involved in every electric account.

The wires company (also called the TDU) owns the poles and lines and delivers the power. The retail electric provider sells the plan and sends the bill. Customers pick the retail provider. They don't pick the wires company.

The main wires companies

Most of the Texas choice market is served by a handful of wires companies:

• Oncor: Dallas–Fort Worth and much of north, central and west Texas
• CenterPoint Energy: Houston and the surrounding area
• AEP Texas: parts of south and west Texas
• TNMP: scattered areas across the state
• Lubbock Power & Light: Lubbock

Why we sort Texas leads by wires company

Retail providers come and go, and customers switch between them all the time. The wires company never changes for a given address. So when you're planning territory or checking whether you can sell somewhere, the wires company is the number that matters.

That's why every Texas lead we send shows the utility, like Oncor or CenterPoint, and never the retail provider's name. A file full of retail brand names tells your reps very little about where they can sell.

Not all of Texas is open

Big parts of Texas are still regulated. Cities with their own utilities, like Austin and San Antonio, and areas served by electric co-ops usually don't have retail choice. A customer there can't switch, no matter how good your offer is.

We check every Texas lead's ZIP code against our list of deregulated areas. Leads in regulated areas, or in ZIPs we can't confirm, are rejected before they ever reach your file. PO boxes come out too, since you can't sell power to a mailbox.

ESI IDs and account numbers

Every Texas electric meter has an ESI ID, a long number that identifies the service point. Some Texas files have ESI IDs, and others have the retail provider's account number. We keep whatever number the lead came with and label it, so your team knows exactly what they're looking at.

The takeaway for reps

Think wires company first. Confirm the ZIP is in a choice area. Then pitch against the customer's current retail plan. Sorting your leads this way means fewer wasted calls and fewer doors where the answer was always going to be no.