Emera Incorporated 2026 Q2 Earnings Call

Thank you all for joining us this morning for Emera's second quarter 2026 conference call and live webcast. Emera's second-quarter earnings release was distributed this morning via Newswire, and the financial statements, management's discussion and analysis, and the presentation being referenced on this call are available on our website at emera.com. Joining me for this morning's call are Scott Balfour, Emera's President and Chief Executive Officer, Jared Green, Emera's Chief Financial Officer, and other members of Emera's management team. Before we begin, I'd like to advise you that this morning's discussion will include forward-looking information, which is subject to the cautionary statement contained in the supporting slide. Today's discussion and presentation will also include references to non-GAAP financial measures. You should refer to the appendix for reconciliations of historical non-GAAP measures to the closest GAAP financial measure.

Unless otherwise specified, all financial information referenced is in Canadian dollars. Now I will turn things over to Scott.

Thank you, Dave. Good morning, everyone. Before turning to our quarterly results, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge a significant milestone in the execution of our strategy. Last Thursday, July 30th, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission approved the sale of New Mexico Gas to Bernhard Capital Partners, and we expect the transaction to close later this month. We began this process with a strategic plan focused on driving long-term value for shareholders to strengthen our balance sheet and credit ratings, allowing us to prioritize our focus on high-growth core areas of our business. The approval of the transaction advances our strategic objectives while further supporting the investments needed to deliver safe, reliable, and affordable service across our utilities. While this transaction supports Emera's strategic growth objectives, it is also important to recognize the strength of the New Mexico Gas business and the people behind its success.

Since joining Emera in 2016, New Mexico Gas has continued to grow and strengthen its position through disciplined investment, strong operational performance, and the commitment of its employees. We're proud of the progress achieved over the past decade and are confident that New Mexico Gas is well-positioned for continued success under Bernhard's ownership. We appreciate the Commission's careful review of the transaction and thank the entire New Mexico Gas team for their contributions and dedication over the years. We expect after-tax proceeds from the transaction of approximately $650 million-$700 million to be reflected in our third-quarter results later this year. These proceeds will be used to reduce holding company debt and enhance our financial flexibility, supporting continued investment across our regulated utility businesses and the opportunities we see ahead.

This morning, we reported second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of CAD 0.69, bringing year-to-date adjusted EPS to CAD 2.06, consistent with last year's very strong performance. These results reinforce our confidence in our outlook. We remain on track to deliver compound annual adjusted EPS growth above our 5%-7% target range through 2026, and we continue to expect growth within that range through 2030. Our performance reflects disciplined execution across the business, including continued portfolio optimization, investment in critical utility infrastructure, and strong operational performance across our regulated utilities. We continue to benefit from strong economic and population growth across our service territories. At Peoples Gas, recently implemented rates are supporting the investments needed to safely and reliably serve a growing customer base. At Tampa Electric, continued customer growth is driving investment in infrastructure needed to meet increasing demand.

Together, these businesses highlight the strength of our regulated portfolio and the opportunities created by Florida's constructive regulatory and economic backdrop. They support continued investment in our systems, drive long-term rate base growth, and position us to deliver value for both customers and shareholders. The long-term outlook for Florida remains particularly compelling. A recent Florida Chamber of Commerce report highlighted that if Florida were its own country, it would rank as the 14th largest economy of the world, ahead of Mexico and Australia. With strong population and economic growth expected to continue, there is substantial need to invest in the infrastructure required to meet our customers' evolving energy needs. We're seeing similar momentum in Nova Scotia, where growing economic activity and electrification are increasing demand for energy infrastructure.

We continue to see encouraging activity related to data center development in Tampa Electric's service territory, with opportunities advancing through system planning and evaluation. As required by Senate Bill 484, Tampa Electric is developing a large load customer tariff that will be filed with the Florida Commission by October 1st. The tariff is designed to ensure new large load customers pay their fair share of the cost required to serve them while protecting existing customers and providing a clear framework for future investment. We view this as an important step in the continued economic growth, enabling infrastructure investment and creating long-term value for both customers and shareholders. We continue to execute at a high level across our regulated utilities.

In the first half of 2026, our teams safely deployed more than CAD 1.7 billion of capital, keeping us on track to execute our largest-ever capital plan of approximately CAD 4 billion this year and is aligned with our targeted 7%-8% annual rate base growth through 2030. We look forward to providing an updated capital plan on our third-quarter earnings call later this year. In Florida, Tampa Electric continues to advance reliability investments and investments required to serve a growing customer base. In Nova Scotia, construction is underway on the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick transmission intertie following receipt of all required approvals. This important project will strengthen connections in the regional grid, support the integration of additional renewable energy resources, and enhance reliability for customers.

The project is expected to be completed in late 2028 and reflects our continued ability to deliver large-scale infrastructure investments that support long-term customer and shareholder value. As announced on our first-quarter call, we entered into an agreement to sell Grand Bahama Power Company, and the transaction closed on May 12th. The sale is reflected in our second-quarter financial results. Combined with the approved sale of New Mexico Gas, these transactions represent important steps in executing our strategy. These strategic actions are enhancing financial flexibility, sharpening our focus on our core regulated utility operations, and supporting continued investment in the higher value and growth opportunities across our portfolio. In Nova Scotia, we are seeing encouraging progress on the securitization of Nova Scotia Power's retiring thermal assets.

Nova Scotia Power is working with the government to provide information in support of establishing a framework that is expected to deliver meaningful long-term savings for customers while also supporting the federal and provincial government's objectives to phase out coal-fired generation. The team will continue to work constructively with stakeholders on this important affordability initiative and are encouraged with the progress made towards completing by the end of the year. I would also highlight a meaningful reduction in customer rates at Tampa Electric. Effective August 1st, customer rates have been reduced by the removal of the storm surcharge associated with the recovery from 2024 hurricanes, resulting in an approximately 11%-12% decrease in residential rates. I will now turn the call over to Jared to discuss our financial results.

Thank you, Scott, and thank you all for joining us this morning. Moving to financial highlights. This morning, we reported year-to-date adjusted earnings of CAD 627 million, up CAD 12 million over last year. As Scott noted, adjusted earnings per share of CAD 2.06, effectively consistent with last year. Second quarter adjusted earnings were CAD 212 million, or CAD 0.69 per share, representing a CAD 0.10 decrease year-over-year. Earnings growth in the first half of the year contributed to an 8% increase in operating cash flow, excluding working capital, compared to the same period last year. Combined with the expected close of the New Mexico Gas transaction, these improvements continue to strengthen our credit profile and financial flexibility.

We remain on track to achieve Moody's 12% operating cash flow, pre-working capital to debt target in 2026, with the New Mexico Gas sale expected to contribute approximately 50 basis points on a sustained basis. During the quarter, Moody's revised our credit outlook to stable. Combined with the expected closing of the New Mexico Gas sale, this reflects meaningful progress we have made in strengthening our financial position and improving our credit profile. These developments further enhance our financial flexibility and reinforce our confidence in our ability to fund growth while maintaining a strong balance sheet. Year-to-date, Emera Energy delivered earnings that were more than CAD 40 million higher than the same period last year, building on their record first quarter. Results were driven by favorable market conditions early in the year and disciplined execution across the business.

Peoples Gas also delivered strong year-to-date results, reflecting new rates that came into effect on January 1st and favorable market conditions that drove higher off-system sales. These gains were partially offset by lower earnings at New Mexico Gas, primarily due to higher operating and maintenance and depreciation expenses. At Tampa Electric, year-to-date earnings benefited from new rates approved as part of the 2024 rate proceeding, combined with colder than normal weather early in the year and strong operational performance, which contributed to higher off-system sales. These factors were partially offset by increased depreciation, operating and maintenance, and interest expense. Within our corporate segment, you'll recall Emera completed a significant refinancing program ahead of a large debt maturity and planned hybrid redemption in mid-June. As part of that process, we upsized our hybrid issuance by U.S. $300 million to support future growth while preserving the associated credit benefits.