CPL Retail Energy Expands Customer Care Operations to Rio Grande Valley

EDINBURG, Texas, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on its long history in South Texas and investments in the state, CPL Retail Energy is expanding its Texas-based customer care operations by over 20 percent, bringing 90 new jobs to the Rio Grande Valley.

"The Valley is a great place for CPL to locate a portion of our customer care operations," said Jim Steffes, Vice President and General Manager of CPL Retail Energy. "Area residents are familiar with the CPL brand, how we operate as a business and what our company stands for."

The location also allows CPL to tap into a strong bilingual community from which to hire, "helping us to meet the needs of our Texas English- and Spanish-speaking customers," Steffes added.

CPL Retail Energy has contracted with Teleperformance to leverage a call center facility in Edinburg, TX – at the heart of CPL's footprint – to meet some of the company's specialized, bilingual, customer-care needs for Texas customers.

At a time when others are laying off employees, CPL is expanding their operations and that is to be commended said State Rep. Veronica Gonzales who attended the announcement. "By expanding their operations in the Valley and investing in upgrades to their processes to deliver a high-quality of customer service, CPL is proving their commitment to our region and to the state."

Though the facility and employees are Teleperformance's, CPL's selection of this customer care partner results in 90 new jobs in the region, said Felix Martinez, COO of Teleperformance Mexico. "The agents are now hired and trained, and they have been actively supporting CPL's customer care needs since the beginning of the new year, managing a portion of the company's English- and Spanish-language Texas residential customer calls," according to Rodriguez.

"South Texas, and the Rio Grande Valley in particular have much to offer companies who are making it a priority to invest in Texas," said State Rep. Aaron Pena, who attended Tuesday's announcement.

CPL currently owns and operates a call center outside of Dallas employing approximately 400 Texans, and contracts with a call center provider in Corpus Christi, supporting about 80 jobs in the Coastal Bend. The company also owns and operates three natural gas-fired power plants including the Frontera Energy Center just outside of Mission.

"We're invested in Texas," said Steffes, "and we are committed to our customers in Texas."

About CPL Retail Energy

CPL Retail Energy is part of the Centrica group of companies, one of the largest multi-state providers of retail energy services in North America. The North American operations have grown to more than 5 million residential and commercial customer relationships. Through its Direct Energy, CPL and WTU brands, the company is the third largest retail energy provider in Texas, and owns natural gas-fired power generation facilities – including the Frontera Energy Center in Mission – and a series of energy-related services companies. Globally, the Centrica group of companies is a leading provider of energy and other essential services with approximately 32 million customer relationships. For more information, visit www.cplretailenergy.com.

SOURCE CPL Retail Energy