Financial Highlights (Unaudited)
- Annual revenue of $1.096 billion,
an increase of 7%
- Annual Adjusted EBITDA1 of $476.9 million, an increase of 27%
- Annual Adjusted net earnings1 per share of
$0.57, an increase of 24%
- Fourth quarter revenues, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted net
earnings per share of $310.2 million,
$138.3 million, and $0.18, respectively
Business Highlights
- Receipt of all regulatory approvals for the acquisition of The
Empire District Electric Company which closed on January 1, 2017
- Renewable Generation Group adds 360 MW of installed capacity to
clean energy portfolio
- Liberty Utilities Group adds nearly 300,000 customer
connections with Park Water and
Empire acquisitions
- Successful rate case outcomes in 2016 which will increase
revenue by a total of U.S. $21.4
million on an annualized basis
OAKVILLE, ON, March 2,
2017 /CNW/ - Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (TSX: AQN, NYSE:
AQN) ("APUC") today announced unaudited financial results for the
fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2016. APUC's
unaudited financial information and supplementary management
commentary are available at
www.AlgonquinPowerandUtilities.com and on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com. All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise
noted and all information contained in this news release is
unaudited.
Financial Review
|
|
|
In millions of
Canadian dollars or on a per share basis unless otherwise
noted (Unaudited)
|
Quarterly
|
Annual
|
Quarter ended
December 31, 2016
|
Year ended
December 31, 2016
|
2016
|
2015
|
Variance
(%)
|
2016
|
2015
|
Variance
(%)
|
Revenue
|
310.2
|
260.3
|
19
|
1,096.0
|
1,027.9
|
7
|
Net earnings from
continuing operations
|
46.3
|
38.1
|
22
|
130.9
|
118.5
|
11
|
|
Per
share
|
0.16
|
0.14
|
14
|
0.44
|
0.43
|
2
|
Adjusted net
earnings1
|
51.4
|
39.7
|
30
|
161.6
|
121.5
|
33
|
|
Per
share
|
0.18
|
0.15
|
20
|
0.57
|
0.46
|
24
|
Cash provided by
operating activities
|
121.3
|
94.3
|
29
|
287.3
|
261.9
|
10
|
Adjusted
EBITDA1
|
138.3
|
109.6
|
26
|
476.9
|
375.4
|
27
|
Adjusted Funds
from Operations1
|
95.8
|
77.2
|
24
|
355.8
|
287.4
|
24
|
Dividend per
share
|
0.14
|
0.13
|
8
|
0.55
|
0.49
|
12
|
Completion of the Empire Acquisition
- On January 1, 2017, APUC
completed its acquisition of The Empire District Electric Company,
materially expanding the Liberty Utilities Group's regulated
utility operations in the United
States with the addition of approximately 218,000 electric,
gas, and water customers in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The acquisition
includes over 1,400 MW of electric generation investment utilized
to meet the needs of Empire's customers.
Fourth Quarter and Year End Corporate Highlights
Fourth Quarter:
- During the fourth quarter, APUC received approval to list its
common shares for trading on the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE")
under the symbol "AQN". APUC's common shares commenced trading on
NYSE on November 29, 2016. APUC
shares continue to be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under
the symbol "AQN".
- At the end of 2016, the Renewable Generation Group purchased
approximately $75 million of wind
turbines that will qualify up to 700 MW of new wind generation
projects for 100% of the production tax credit ("PTC") rate under
the IRS safe harbor rules in the United
States. The Renewable Generation Group views that
eligibility for the full PTC rate is an important competitive
factor in the market and is currently evaluating projects to
maximize the value of this equipment.
Full Year 2016:
- During 2016, the Liberty Utilities Group successfully completed
several rate cases representing a cumulative annualized revenue
increase of approximately U.S. $21.4
million. The Liberty Utilities Group has pending rate
case filings which are expected to be completed in 2017 that
represent an additional increase in requested revenue requirement
in the amount of U.S. $14.1
million.
- On January 8, 2016, the Liberty
Utilities Group completed the acquisition of Park Water
Company. The Park Water System owns and operates regulated
water distribution utilities which collectively serve approximately
74,000 customer connections in Southern
California and Western Montana.
- On July 29, 2016, the 200 MW
Odell Wind Facility achieved commercial operation ("COD").
The facility, located in Minnesota, is expected to generate 831.8
GW-hrs of energy annually and has a 20 year power purchase
agreement with a Minnesota
electric utility.
Subsequent to Year-end 2016:
- On February 21, 2017, the 150 MW
Deerfield Wind Facility achieved COD. The facility, located
in central Michigan, is expected
to generate 555.2 GW-hrs of energy annually and has a 20 year power
purchase agreement with a Michigan
electric utility.
- On January 11, 2017, the 10 MW
Bakersfield II Solar Facility achieved COD. The facility,
located in Kern County,
California, is expected to generate 24.2 GW-hrs of energy
annually and has a 20 year power purchase agreement with a
California electric
utility.
- On February 15, 2017, the 50 MW
Luning solar generating facility achieved COD. The facility,
located in Mineral County, Nevada
is expected to generate 144.6 GW-hrs of energy annually and whose
output is dedicated to satisfying the renewable energy needs of the
California based electric
distribution customers of the Liberty Utilities Group.
"Our 2016 results represent continued affirmation of the value
proposition embodied in the Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.
story. The 2016 announcement and successful completion
of the Empire acquisition and construction of 360 MW of new
renewable electric generation will deliver record 2017
earnings," commented Ian Robertson,
Chief Executive Officer of APUC. "We are confident that, with our
commitments to growth within our Renewable Generation business and
the benefits from the increased scale of our Liberty Utilities
platform, APUC is well positioned to deliver increased shareholder
value over the coming years."
Earnings Conference Call
APUC will hold an earnings conference call at 10:00 a.m. eastern time on Friday, March 3, 2017, hosted by Chief Executive
Officer, Ian Robertson and Chief
Financial Officer, David
Bronicheski.
Date: Friday, March 3, 2017
Start Time: 10:00 a.m. eastern time
Phone Number: Toll free
within North America:
1-800-319-4610 or Toronto:
416-915-3239
Conference ID: Please ask
to join the Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. conference
call
Presentation Access:
http://services.choruscall.ca/links/algonquinpower20170303.html
For those unable to attend the live call, a digital recording
will be available for replay two hours after the call by dialing
1-855-669-9658 or 1-604-674-8052, access code 1066 from
Friday, March 3, 2017 until
Friday, March 17, 2017.
About Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.
APUC is a North American diversified generation, transmission
and distribution utility with $10
billion of total assets. Liberty Utilities provides rate
regulated natural gas, water, and electricity generation,
transmission, and distribution utility services to over 783,000
customers in the United States.
APUC is committed to being a North American leader in the
generation of clean energy through its portfolio of long term
contracted wind, solar and hydroelectric generating facilities
representing more than 1,300 MW of installed capacity. APUC
delivers continuing growth through an expanding pipeline of
renewable energy development projects, organic growth within its
rate regulated generation, distribution and transmission
businesses, and the pursuit of accretive acquisitions. Common
shares and preferred shares are traded on the Toronto Stock
Exchange under the symbols AQN, AQN.PR.A, and AQN.PR.D.
APUC's common shares are also listed on the New York Stock Exchange
under the symbol AQN.
Visit APUC at www.AlgonquinPowerandUtilities.com and follow
us on Twitter @AQN_Utilities.
Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Non-GAAP
Financial Measures
Certain statements included in this news release contain
information that is forward-looking within the meaning of certain
securities laws, including information and statements regarding
prospective results of operations, financial position or cash
flows. These statements are based on factors or assumptions that
were applied in drawing a conclusion or making a forecast or
projection, including assumptions based on historical trends,
current conditions and expected future developments. Since
forward-looking statements relate to future events and conditions,
by their very nature they require making assumptions and involve
inherent risks and uncertainties. APUC cautions that although it is
believed that the assumptions are reasonable in the circumstances,
these risks and uncertainties give rise to the possibility that
actual results may differ materially from the expectations set out
in the forward-looking statements. Material risk factors include
those set out in the management's discussion and analysis section
of APUC's most recent annual report, quarterly report, and APUC's
Annual Information Form. Given these risks, undue reliance should
not be placed on these forward-looking statements, which apply only
as of their dates. Other than as specifically required by law, APUC
undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements
or information to reflect new information, subsequent or
otherwise.
(1) Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Use of
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The terms "Adjusted Net Earnings", Adjusted EBITDA, and
"Adjusted Funds from Operations" are used in this press release.
The terms "Adjusted Net Earnings", Adjusted EBITDA, and "Adjusted
Funds from Operations" are not recognized measures under GAAP.
There is no standardized measure of "Adjusted Net Earnings",
Adjusted EBITDA, and "Adjusted Funds from Operations" and
consequently APUC's method of calculating these measures may differ
from methods used by other companies and therefore may not be
comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. A
calculation, analysis and reconciliation to the nearest GAAP
measure of "Adjusted Net Earnings", Adjusted EBITDA, and "Adjusted
Funds from Operations" can be found in the Supplementary Financial
Information (unaudited) for the quarter ended December 31,
2016.
Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure calculated by APUC as cash
provided by operating activities without giving effect to (as
applicable): depreciation and amortization expense, income tax
expense or recoveries, acquisition costs, litigation expenses,
interest expense, gain or loss on derivative financial instruments,
write down of intangibles and property, plant and equipment,
earnings attributable to non-controlling interests and gain or loss
on foreign exchange, earnings or loss from discontinued operations
and other typically non-recurring items. Adjusted EBITDA is not
intended to be representative of cash provided by operating
activities or results of operations determined in accordance with
GAAP.
Adjusted Net Earnings
Adjusted Net Earnings is a non-GAAP measure calculated by APUC
as net earnings from operations without giving effect to (as
applicable): gains or losses on foreign exchange, foreign exchange
forward contracts, interest rate swaps, acquisition costs,
litigation expenses and write down of intangibles and property,
plant and equipment, earnings or loss from discontinued operations
and other typically non-recurring items as these are not reflective
of the performance of the underlying business of APUC. It is not
intended to be representative of net earnings or loss determined in
accordance with GAAP.
Adjusted Funds from Operations
Adjusted Funds from Operations is a non-GAAP calculated by APUC
as cash flows from operating activities without giving effect to
(as applicable) changes in working capital balances, acquisition
expenses, litigation expenses, cash provided or used in
discontinued operations and other typically non-recurring items
affecting cash from operations as these are not reflective of the
long-term performance of the underlying businesses of APUC.
It is not intended to be representative of cash flows from
operating activities as determined in accordance with GAAP.
SOURCE Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.