Earnings Labs

IDACORP, Inc. (IDA)

Q1 2015 Earnings Call· Sun, May 3, 2015

$145.34

-0.28%

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Transcript

Operator

Operator

Welcome to IDACORP's First Quarter 2015 Conference Call. Today's call is being recorded and webcast live. A complete replay will be available from the end of the day for a period of 12 months on the Company's website at www.idacorpinc.com. [Operator Instructions] At this time I'd like to turn the call over to IDACORP's Director of Investor Relations, Mr. Lawrence Spencer. Please go ahead.

Lawrence Spencer

Analyst

Thank you, Nicole [ph], and good afternoon everyone. As you've probably seen, we issued our earnings release and Form 10-Q before the markets opened today. They're both posted to the IDACORP website. We will be using a few slides to supplement today’s call, and you can also find those on our website. We'll refer those slides as we work our way through today’s presentation. On today’s call we have Darrel Anderson, IDACORP’s President and Chief Executive Officer, and Steve Keen, IDACORP’s Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. We also have other individuals to help answer your questions during the Q&A period. Before turning the presentation over to Steve, I’ll cover our Safe Harbor statement on Slide 3. Our presentation today will include forward-looking statements. While these forward-looking statements represent our current judgment or opinion of what the future holds, these statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from statements made today. So we caution you against placing undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Some of the factors and events that could cause future results to differ materially from those included in forward-looking statements are listed on Slide 3 and included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we encourage you to review. On Slide 4 we present our quarterly financial results. IDACORP’s first quarter 2015 earnings per diluted share were $0.47, a decrease of $0.08 per share from last year’s first quarter. I'll now turn it over to Steve to discuss the quarter results in greater detail and review our estimated 2015 key operating metrics.

Steve Keen

Analyst

Thanks, Larry, and good afternoon everyone. I want to start with Slide 5 where we present a reconciliation of earnings from first quarter 2014 to first quarter 2015. Overall, net income decreased by $4 million, largely due to the $5.8 million reduction in Idaho Power's operating income, partially offset by lower income tax expense. The unusually mild weather in Idaho Power service area during the first quarter of this year lowered operating income by $2.5 million compared with the first quarter of last year. This is primarily due to reduced residential sales net of relevant power supply and regulatory mechanism adjustments. The weather impact is shown on Page 38 of our Form 10-Q filed this morning where we discussed the comparison of heating degree days. For the first quarter of 2015, we experienced heating degree days, 13% below the first quarter of 2014, and 15% below normal levels. Partially offsetting the weather-related decrease was Idaho Power's continued customer growth, which contributed $1.9 million to operating income. Darrel will provide additional economic color in a moment. An additional $3 million reduction, primarily due to timing of O&M expenditures for thermal plant maintenance and hydroelectric operating expense further reduced operating income. These were normal expenditures which occurred earlier this year than in 2014, and we do not anticipate any change to our estimated full year 2015 O&M costs. Finally, increased depreciation expenses lowered operating earnings by $1.2 million due to recent capital additions. The first quarter of 2014 also included a $1 million benefit from amortization of additional accumulated deferred investment tax credits or ADITCs, which did not recur in 2015. You may recall that no ADITCs were ultimately used in 2014, and the first quarter additional amortization was reversed in last year's second quarter. With the full balance of $45 million…

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Thanks, Steve, and thanks everyone for joining us this afternoon. There are a few areas I would like to update you on before we turn to questions. I will start with a look at some customer and economy related metrics. Idaho Power's customer count has continued to grow and we continue to expect positive customer growth. As Steve just mentioned, customer growth contributed $1.9 million to operating income and increased general business revenues by $2.6 million in the first quarter of 2015 when compared with the first quarter of 2014. For the 12 months ended March 31st, 2015, the customers growth rate was 1.6%. As of March 2015, unemployment in our service area was 4%, compared to 5.5% at the national level. During the first quarter, employment in our service area increased approximately 1.5%, now exceeding 467,000 people. With these analytics forecasted as of March 2015, growth in gross area product in our service area is expected to be 3.2% and 3.8% for 2015 and 2016, respectively. These updated gross area product figures reflect an increase from the January 2015 estimates of 3.1% and 3.5% for the same periods. We continue to be optimistic about growth in our service territory despite what some of the national headlines indicate in other parts of the country. Taking a look now at hydroelectric matters. As of April 20th, the snow water equivalent above Brownlee Reservoir and Hells Canyon was 52% of normal. As Steve noted earlier, we have reduced our expected level of hydro generation for the year as a result of a number of factors. We have seen the percent of snow water equivalent above Brownlee Reservoir and Hells Canyon decline from just under 90% of normal in February to 52% of normal as of April 20th. While not part of our…

Operator

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, we will begin the question-and-answer session. [Operator Instructions] Our first question comes from the line of Paul Ridzon of KeyBanc. Your line is now open.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Good afternoon. Can you hear me?

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Hi, Paul. You bet.

Steve Keen

Analyst

Hi, Paul.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Hi. A couple of quick questions. One, the lower hydro forecast was essentially captured in your recent PCA filings, so it should have minimal impact. Is that the right way to look at it?

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

As we said today, it's based on a forecast, and as things continue to change, obviously that will get captured in any variances as we go into this next year. We took our best shot when we made that filing as of April 15th.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

So that filing captured the deterioration we saw since February.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

It does carry and captures a lot of that deterioration that we saw since we've seen in February. It doesn't capture all of it obviously because of the passage of time. And it also doesn't capture any potential benefits that could come also with late -- with, for instance, the late spring precip fall or any other thing. So we do -- there is a cut-up on it, and so it's not one of those living documents that continue to go on.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

And then on the may-call premium, you have a $17 million may-call premium, and then that's partly offset by a $7 million tax benefit, or does that may-call premium get amortized over the original life [ph] of the bonds?

Steve Keen

Analyst

Paul, the may-call will be amortized in and slightly raised at interest cost to the 3.65, will go up slightly. It gets amortized over the 30 years with the new bonds.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Okay.

Steve Keen

Analyst

So the flow-through is really a -- that would be a current deduction this year. You would see the benefit in 2015. And that $2 million figure that I threw out compares the old interest rate, the roughly 6%, versus the new interest rate and with the may-call premium added on to it, that still the net is $2 million a year positive.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Thank you. And then when are you considering closing Valmy?

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

We actually, Paul, what we're doing now is we're running a series of scenarios as part of the Integrated Resource Plan. And in that plan there's a range of options that are currently being evaluated as part of the scenario, anywhere from 2019 to 2025, all the way to the end of its estimated use of life. So, all of those different scenarios are being evaluated in the 20-plus scenarios that we are looking at in the current portfolio.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

So, Valmy doesn't have a date certain when it's going to be retired?

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

We do not have a date certain at this time. There's -- a lot of those dates are still subject to discussions with our partners. And we'll continue our ongoing analysis as part of our IRP.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Thank you very much.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Thanks Paul.

Paul Ridzon - KeyBanc Capital Markets

Analyst

Thanks.

Operator

Operator

Thank you. And our next question comes from the line of Brian Russo of Ladenburg Thalmann. Your line is now open.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Hi, good afternoon.

Steve Keen

Analyst

Hi, Brian.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Hi, Brian.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Well, maybe if you could just talk about the ADITC and your ability to not need them this year. I would have thought, with sales down and with the incremental timing of the O&M expense, you might have to use some ADITCs in the first quarter. But then I see you have a $5 million tax benefit from the may-call premium. If it wasn't for the tax benefit, do you have any thoughts on whether you would need any ADITCs in this first quarter?

Steve Keen

Analyst

Paul, the -- or Brian, I'm sorry. Sorry, Brian.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

It's okay.

Steve Keen

Analyst

The question you're asking is a good one. And as you know, the mechanism would kick in. We actually would have stayed within our guidance range really regardless, and credits would have kicked in in support of this and kept this within our guidance range. I would say, if we didn't have the deduction for the tax benefit, we would have been near that line, and if anything, would have used a very modest amount of tax credits. But it really does -- there's other factors that are coming in as well. But it certainly would have been a -- it would have been in the range that we said before of less than $5 million type range. It might have -- we might have crossed the line. But as we sit here today with everything else factored in, we think -- we don't see a need to use ADITCs at all.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Got it. Okay. And maybe you could -- the O&M expense, you know, year over year it's projected to be done and it's obviously up in this first quarter. So, any idea how the O&M will play out in the next three quarters?

Steve Keen

Analyst

We believe we are on track with what we originally telegraphed to everyone. And this was really timing. This is a -- these are normal expenditures, they just hit a little bit earlier, and we had some costs that hit first quarter of this year, the last year really fell in the second quarter. That is not a signal that our -- there's any pending uptick in O&M. We're sticking with our opening guidance. And as you know, we've had a real focus on managing O&M. And as I've said, I don't believe it can continually drop, but we can continually manage it and control the level that it goes up. And we're doing a great job with that.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Okay, great. And the last question is, can you remind us or talk about the dynamic of below normal hydro conditions and mild weather and sales to your irrigation customers? If there is any correlation or sensitivity there?

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Brian, I'll attempt to talk about this a little bit. But obviously, it's been drier, it's fair to say that, yeah, we're seeing irrigation coming on earlier. The flipside of that equation, depending on the crops that are in the ground and the length at which they're going to have the opportunity to irrigate, it might mean they stop irrigating sooner. And so it -- and that, you know, this precipitous drop in the hydro situation and in the -- all the factors that tie -- you know, came out -- came really [inaudible] the last six weeks or so, six or eight weeks, where precipitation we anticipate didn't show up, you know, the thinking [ph]. So what we're not 100% sure of is what the ag community has with respect to crops in the ground. They're well aware of things, but -- so we're not sure when that's going to stop, but we have seen an early rush of irrigation early because of the nature of the temperatures as well as the lack of precipitation.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Okay. So you're seeing higher irrigation sales earlier this year due to this dynamic.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

That's correct.

Brian Russo - Ladenburg Thalmann

Analyst

Got you. All right. Thank you very much.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Thanks, Brian.

Operator

Operator

Thank you. That concludes the question-and-answer session today. Mr. Anderson, I'll turn the conference back to you.

Darrel Anderson

Analyst

Well, thanks everybody for participating today. We truly appreciate your interest in our Company. And we hope to have you guys tune in for annual meeting comments in May. Thanks for taking the time today. Appreciate it.

Operator

Operator

That concludes today's conference. Thank you for your participation. Everyone have a great day.