MDU Resources Group, Inc. 2026 Q2 Earnings Call

Welcome everyone to the MDU Resources Group second quarter 2026 earnings conference call. Our earnings release and supporting materials for this call are available on our website at mdu.com under the Investors section. Leading today's call are Nicole Kivisto, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Jason Vollmer, Chief Financial Officer of MDU Resources Group. During today's call, we will make certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Please refer to our SEC filings for a discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ. I will now turn the call over to Nicole for her prepared remarks.

Nicole? Thank you, Brent. Good afternoon, everyone.

We appreciate you joining us today and for your continued interest in MDU Resources. This morning, we reported second quarter 2026 earnings of $21.3 million or $0.10 per share. Our results reflected continued execution across our regulated utility and pipeline businesses. New rates, customer growth, investments such as Badger Wind Farm, and higher retail sales volumes helped drive the results. We delivered solid results while also continuing to advance strategic infrastructure opportunities that continue to support long-term growth. A key highlight for the quarter was certainly the continued advancement of the proposed Bakken East Pipeline Project.

With recently signed precedent agreements, we now have executed agreements with all customers that submitted binding open-season interest totaling nearly 1.2 billion cubic feet per day of transportation capacity, with a negotiated option in place that may increase contracted volumes to nearly all of the original interest from our binding open season. We continue to design the project for 1.4 billion cubic feet per day of transportation capacity. Overall project design is being finalized based on confirmed customer volumes and delivery locations before a final investment decision is made, which is expected ahead of a FERC 7C filing. This application is now anticipated to be filed in the fourth quarter of 2026. The proposed in-service dates of phase one in late 2029 and phase two in late 2030 remain unchanged.

As development progresses, we continue to evaluate financing, partnership, and other commercial options to support the projected $2.7 billion-$3.2 billion project. The potential Bakken East investment remains incremental to our current capital program. We also continue to see encouraging development activity across our service territory, including data center opportunities and broader infrastructure demand. Our approach to serving data centers is grounded in protecting existing customers and ensuring that growth creates value for the communities we serve. Data center customers are responsible for paying the costs associated with connecting to and being served by the electric system, including infrastructure and energy-related expenses. At the same time, the additional revenue generated from serving these customers can help support the electric system and contribute to reducing certain fixed costs for existing retail customers by allocating them across a broader customer base. This current approach creates benefits for all customers.

During the quarter, we did enter into an electric service agreement with Applied Digital to serve Polaris Forge 3, an AI factory near Center, North Dakota. At full capacity, the campus would require 430 megawatts of electricity. Approval of the ESA and other regulatory filings by the North Dakota Public Service Commission is pending. We now have over one gigawatt of data center load under signed ESAs with approximately 240 megawatts currently online, with additional volumes expected over the next few years as additional buildings are constructed. On the electric regulatory front, we did file a North Dakota general rate case on June 30th, 2026, requesting an annual revenue increase of approximately $34.5 million, with interim rates of approximately $26.3 million requested to begin on September 1st of this year. The filing reflects electric infrastructure investments, normal depreciation, reliability improvements, system safety, and higher operation and maintenance expense.

In Montana, interim rates reflecting an annual increase of approximately $10.4 million remain in effect subject to refund, and a settlement agreement of $10 million has been filed and is pending commission approval. In Wyoming, our general rate case settlement was approved for an annual increase of $5.8 million, with rates effective April 1st, 2026. Also in June, the North Dakota Public Service Commission approved the route permit for the Jamestown to Ellendale transmission project. This project is expected to enhance reliability, improve resiliency, reduce transmission congestion, and support access to lower-cost energy across the region. At our natural gas distribution segment, positive regulatory outcomes in Idaho, Washington, Montana, and Wyoming, as well as higher retail sales volumes and continued customer growth supported improved year-over-year results.

In Washington, we did file a multi-year natural gas case requesting an annual revenue increase of $25.1 million in year one and $18.1 million in year two. Our Oregon general rate case remains pending with a multi-party settlement agreement, which was filed on July 31st, 2026, with a requested annual increase of approximately $12.2 million. We also do anticipate filing a Minnesota general rate case later this year. At our pipeline segment, strategic growth initiatives continue to advance. The Line Section 32 expansion project remains on schedule following our FERC Section 7(c) application filing in March of 2026 and continues to target at late 2028 in-service date, subject to regulatory approvals. Development activities for the potential Minot industrial project also continue under agreements currently extended through late 2026.

In addition, our pipeline business filed a FERC rate case on May 29th of this year, requesting a $31 million annual revenue increase. Approximately 30% of the requested revenue increase is due to proposed new depreciation and amortization rates. FERC accepted and suspended the proposed rates on June 30th, with rates to become effective December 1st, 2026, subject to refund and the outcome of hearing procedures if a settlement with our customers and FERC is not reached. Looking ahead, we are reaffirming our 2026 earnings per share guidance range of $0.93-$1.00. This guidance is based on assumptions including normal weather, economic and operating conditions for the remainder of the year, continued customer growth, successful execution of approved capital investment programs, and constructive regulatory outcomes. Our long-term earnings per share growth objective remains at 6%-8%.

Our capital program for 2026 through 2030 totals approximately $3.1 billion, with planned investments of approximately $1.1 billion in our electric business, $1.4 billion at our natural gas distribution business, and $643 million at our pipeline. We remain focused on disciplined execution of this plan while advancing additional infrastructure opportunities that support customers, communities, and stockholders. As always, MDU Resources is committed to operating with integrity and with a focus on safety. We remain dedicated to delivering safe, reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally responsible energy services while positioning the company for compelling long-term growth. With that, I will now turn the call over to Jason for the financial update.

Jason? Thank you, Nicole. As Nicole mentioned, we announced this morning second-quarter earnings of $21.3 million, or $0.10 per share, compared to $13.7 million, or $0.07 per share for the second quarter of 2025.

On a year-to-date basis, earnings were $102.1 million, or $0.49 per share, compared to $95.7 million or $0.47 per share for the first six months of last year. Turning to our individual businesses, our electric utility reported second quarter earnings of $14.7 million, compared to $10.4 million for the same period in 2025. Results benefited from higher retail sales revenue, including recovery mechanisms associated with renewable investments such as the Badger Wind Farm, which contributed $3.3 million in earnings during the quarter. Interim rates in Montana and new rates in Wyoming, along with higher retail sales volumes across all major customer classes, also contributed to the increase.

Our natural gas distribution segment reported a seasonal second quarter loss of $3.9 million, compared to a seasonal loss of $7.4 million in the second quarter of 2025. The improved year-over-year result was primarily driven by new rates in Idaho, Washington, Montana, and Wyoming, as well as higher retail sales volumes across all customer classes. Retail sales volumes increased 6.7%, and customer growth was 1.6% year-over-year. These benefits were partially offset by higher interest expense resulting from higher long-term debt balances. The pipeline segment earned $14.4 million in the second quarter, compared to $15.4 million in the same period in 2025. The decrease was driven by lower other income and higher depreciation and amortization expense from a growth project placed in service.