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Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo - SABESP (SBS)

Q1 2020 Earnings Call· Tue, May 19, 2020

$33.48

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Transcript

Operator

Operator

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. At this time, we’d like to welcome everybody to SABESP Conference Call to discuss its results of First Quarter of 2020. The audio for this conference is being broadcast simultaneously through the Internet on the website, https://www.sabesp.com.br, where you can also find the slideshow presentation available for download. We inform that all the participants will only be able to listen to the conference during the company's presentation. After the company's remarks are over, there will be a Q&A period. At that time, further instructions will be given. [Operator Instructions]Before proceeding, let me mention that forward-looking statements are being made under the Safe Harbor of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1996. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of SABESP's management and on information currently available to the Company.Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, because they relate to future events and therefore, depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Investors should understand that general economic conditions, industry conditions and other operating factors, could also affect the future results of SABESP, and could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements.Today with us we have Rui Affonso, Chief Financial Officer and Investor Relations Officer; Mario Sampaio, Head of Capital Markets and Investor Relations and Marcelo Miyagui, Head of Accounting. Now, I will turn the conference over to Mario Sampaio. Sir, you may begin the conference call.

Mario Sampaio

Analyst

Okay. Thank you, everybody to join us on this conference for our first quarter 2020. As usual, we have some slides. Let's go through them and then we're open for question and answer.So let's move to Slide 3. Here we see a 2.6% growth in total billed volume of water and sewage in the first quarter of the year. The total billed volume increased 2.2% of which 2% in water 2.5% in sewage, this is compared to the first quarter of '19 and without considering the municipality of Santo Andre. The increase was chiefly due to the residential category which moved up by 2.7%. This is mainly in the metro region of San Paolo with emphasis on the balancing of San Paolo and [Indiscernible]. As for the municipality of Santo Andre, as you remember, we service on our wholesale basis, up to first quarter '19 and we have been servicing since August 2019 on a retail basis.The drop in billed water volume is natural at the beginning of the retail operations. Since the losses in the distribution systems are not recognized by SABESP. On the other hand, there is a relevant increase in the volume sewage treatment in Santo Andre as we did not operate the system at all before we took over.It was possible also to notice an increase in volume in the residential category in almost all the municipalities operated and a trend of greater increase in satellite savings both from San Paolo and in other cities that are regional centers in the interior land and coastal lines we operate.Although it is not possible to observe significant impacts on volumes for this quarter due to the isolation measures adopted at the end of March. We noticed a reduction in the volume billed in the industrial and public categories…

Operator

Operator

[Operator Instructions]Our first question is from Lilyanna Yang from HSBC. Go ahead.

LilyannaYang

Analyst

Hey, hi. Thank you for that comprehensive presentation. Would you mind please giving us a brief overview or how you see the regulator responding to the crisis together with SABESP? You indicated that they came out with a preliminary walk, which in my personal view seems low as a 7.38%, right? And you have been suffering from higher delinquency. You have a little bit of demand destruction with unknown outcome on the revenue side for now, right? But you do have a way to review that is as early as May 2021. So, my question is, do you see this potential delay in the rate review process happening in May? And it did happen in the prior to weight reviews for SABESP?And if you see any changes recently for the goods for the bad on the regulatory side, on the approach of the regulator towards the rate review and how they deal with the crisis, which is unprecedented? Any color on that front will be super helpful. Thank you.

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Lily, it's Rui. Just to start maybe [Indiscernible] give much color on that. If he is on the line I believe so. Well on the first side without seeing from the technical notes, very recent technical notes. The intention, we can seek to this note is to hurry the process of the tariff review and in the event of complications due to delays related to the COVID, the economic crisis and so on. And some indications of simplification of parts of the process in order to come up with the targets to conclude the whole process on May 2021, but this is a preliminary approach.We expected that they will try to make all the efforts in order to conclude it on time. Despite all of the problems that we have been suffering we and they will. So the answer should be to simplify some process rather than to postpone it, at least at this time. I don't know [indiscernible] more comments or need some testing.

UnidentifiedCompanyRepresentative

Analyst

Yes. Rui, I am on the call and I think you've summarized it quite well. I don't feel like to add anything on that. Other than we are ready to comply with all schedules already provided with -- or by assess. So we are working towards delivering information as required right now in May then it may should be providing assess with some start-up information and now a little wise we should be providing comments on the methodology as well as on our work. So that’s about it at this point in time.

LilyannaYang

Analyst

Okay, great. Thank you. And follow-up question. On your regulatory asset base, there’s a certain amount of assets of investment that had not yet been recognized by the regulator in your asset base. Do you think that in May, 2021 there would be enough time to get to a review maybe of those assets or the idea is to let them stood apart go and decide about it later when you have more time and then just to make sure that the recent investments of the company are truly reflected in there rather than we discussing what invested pre second rate review?

UnidentifiedCompanyRepresentative

Analyst

Go ahead, Rui, you want to answer that?

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Yes. It's, well, from our side we are doing our best in order to have those process concluded by May 2021. I believe that the hope of SABESP and the expectation of SABESP is the same. I cannot see a sort of interference in one process on the other. We have time; we have problems of course to evaluate on the field some assets, -- example.But in the other hand the discussion on the previous cuts in our asset basis is now apart it's well known problem. I have to go deep on each, we are working hard to meet and present our points of view to assess and I believe that the both sides want to get it solved the sooner possible.

Operator

Operator

Our next question is from [Indiscernible]. Go ahead.

UnidentifiedAnalyst

Analyst

Hey gentlemen, it's Hasan Raza from Robert Asset Management. How are you? Rui, Mario, good to hear your voice. Well listen, a question for Rui, in the past, Rui had talked about in - you had mentioned in terms of the regulatory developments as per the assess the calendar, there is the process where is going to be some deliberations into improving the targeted threats for certain customer classes. But right now you have some customer classes paying a lot of tariff and some customer classes paying less, even though they could afford to pay more. So there was some kind of a regulatory process to better align the tariff structure with the customers who can pay --their ability to pay. I'm just wondering where is that prospects right now where the best you can better align the tariff structure for the various customer classes? If you have an update on that process, we'd love to hear on please?

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Well, Rui again. And as always, and we are in the middle of the process to review our tariff structure. So we are working hard on it several issues in parallel and yes the timeframe is the end of this year to have it concluded. So we are working on it. And so we have three different --two big movements. The ordinary type review right. The second one the review of our tariff structure that's in place, we are working on it. [Indiscernible] and preparing our technical notes. And, third is one important point left behind. That's -- this cost $R6 billion left behind now follow up date. So the three of then are considered to be running in parallel. So, yes, we have lots of work to do it. I don't know. Keep a word -- or comment, where at this point we are on this last issue?

UnidentifiedCompanyRepresentative

Analyst

Okay. I can just want to comment on that. I guess it's important to mention that [Indiscernible] that has just been published foresees that we should conclude this work as well as the work on regulatory office by end of this year. So, there should be one or two months actually few months before the final calculation of the tariff review which should occur in May. So, we have a tight schedule but we are working towards the legal requirements or our intelligence to comment on that.We have had a few conversations with the regulator on the tariff set. But there is no conclusion nor any indication. I mean, what could be the outcome of that. So, that is to what should be done but we are obviously working with them on anything that.

UnidentifiedAnalyst

Analyst

Rui, if I may. Can I ask you one more follow up question? As you might be aware in the electronic distribution sector, the government is setting up a fund to help with the account receivable that might be a way to alleviate any cash working capital grants for electric distribution companies. I know -- I obviously not from your perspective, you are very well capitalized company. Your credit metrics are very solid. I was wondering, do you think that kind of a measure that kind of facility might be useful also for the water sector and if it is, any thoughts as to what we've done to have this similar facility set up by the government or by the state for the water sector. So if need be what companies can draw from that kind of facility.

RuiAffonso

Analyst

You mean if I'm following you, Hasan, you're asking me if the government -- you mean the federal one, right could provide funds or conditions special conditions for the water sanitation sector in order to deal with the pandemic economic crisis? Is that correct?

UnidentifiedAnalyst

Analyst

Yes. Specifically how the government is helping the electric distribution sector by setting up a facility which can help companies, if customers are really paying their bills. It's like, almost like a facility to help with working capital, things like that for the electric distribution companies. And I was just wondering if such help could be extended to the water industry.

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Okay, you're comparing us with the electricity sector, correct?

UnidentifiedAnalyst

Analyst

Yes, in terms of the government effort for COVID-19.

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Okay. In the government attitude. Well, as we commented before the electricity sector is something -- it's quite -- the electric sector, the institution now structures quite the verge -- structure of the sanitation, water sanitation sector in the sense that we have that sector one concession power, this other one and hundreds of companies below in generation, distribution and so on, and transmission, in our, in our case in our sector is quite the opposite we have thousand -- 5,700 and something concession power and municipalities in some cases and connection with the states in metro regions. And then we have just one company that is responsible to provide water and get the sewage untreated.So, we don't see that the possibility of the same movement in a sense that the federal government could provide fund as they announced recently to the whole system in order not to say right size or to compensate, compensate there, they needed to right size in the short trend due to the pandemic and the crisis and the delinquency. In our sector it's different, because I cannot see the possibility of say municipalities or states that the very best economic position fiscal position to provide those kinds of funds to compensate the delinquency or readiness dropping of our companies. But in the other side, we have and we mentioned in our call, Mario said it, that the multilateral banks and private banks here, cash economic, BNDES, IADB, the World Bank and the IADB are providing some possibilities to -- in order to we get more liquidity during the crisis.Or more access to some special lines of financing. For say water treatment and material example, very concrete, that should be very important. We don't have the evaluation to now, but that doesn't suffer our negotiations that we have taking with those banks that will help us to cross these bad period not inch to summarize it, not -- I cannot see funds any from the concession of powers, because there are thousands of very bad superposition. But I can see help from the multilaterals specifically and in some cases from the public banks.

UnidentifiedAnalyst

Analyst

That's helpful. And if I can close with one additional question for you, Rui is can you provide an update on the privatization, legislation? Obviously, a lot has changed because of the pandemic COVID in the last two to three months. So where do you think the privatization legislation currently stands? And what do you think that is the timeframe to potentially revise that legislative process?

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Hasan, you make as always a very difficult question to be asked. Because not us but nobody knows exactly the interactions of those two very try to connect the crisis, it's difficult to know the extension or evolve. Remember right now, people in Europe are talking about the second wave and third wave of this pandemic. So what we have done is take the measures immediately in order to constrain our budget in order to provide more liquidity to create say a buffer of liquidity to cross the period that we can see. Of course, we cannot see longer than this year is very difficult as everybody it is difficult to forecast like that, but we, quarter by quarter we are adapting our expectations to the reality and take measures in anticipation of the rollout of our debt. We are anticipating the drop on our revenues are the higher delinquency we probably -- we see in front of us. And adapting time by time every quarter to the reality.

Operator

Operator

Our next question is from Lilyanna Yang. Go ahead. Lilyanna?

LilyannaYang

Analyst

Hey, sorry, I was on mute. Quick question, please. If cash economic also giving you some better conditions for payment of the laws or is just mostly BNDES here.

RuiAffonso

Analyst

Mario, I believe that you can answer that question because cash economies we are negotiated with them also. Yes.

MarioSampaio

Analyst

Yes. Lily, cash is one step back from BNDES. They're both opening the opportunity for companies to waive the debt servicing for six months. Obviously, that the value, the amount will be added to the total debt. So in that sense, we'll be co funded financed for the period. But we are in our case, working with both to make sure that we fit on the conditions precedent. But overall it is yes, very supportive measure for those two for the sanitation sector. So yes there is something out there.

Operator

Operator

At this time appears to be no further questions. I'll turn the conference back over to SABESP for their final remarks.

Mario Sampaio

Analyst

Yes, I'm here. Okay. We like to thank everybody to participate in one more conference call of our results and a very special one. Again, in the middle of a huge crisis and giving you all the information we have, that we are dealing with this crisis. And we are open to questions and to numbers in our IR department, please contact Mario Angela, all the team. We are open 24 hours a day to help you understand better our actions. Thank you very well and see you next quarter. Bye.

Operator

Operator

The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today's presentation. You may now disconnect.