OPG Reports 2020 First Quarter Financial Results

OPG supports our essential workers, achieves significant milestones on the Darlington Refurbishment Project and completes acquisition of natural gas-fired assets

TORONTO, May 12, 2020 /CNW/ - Today Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG or Company) reported its first quarter financial results, reaffirming its commitment to continuing to provide a safe and reliable supply of cost effective electricity to Ontario during the current public health crisis.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has forced all of us to question many aspects of our lives that we may have taken for granted. As millions of Ontarians continue to do their part to help slow the spread of this virus, they may be feeling uncertain about the future," said Ken Hartwick, OPG's President and CEO. "I want to assure Ontarians that OPG's dedicated workers continue to safely generate reliable electricity to power our homes, hospitals, care facilities and businesses, while managing the impact of spring freshet at our hydroelectric plants. In these difficult times, the entire electricity sector is working to do everything we can to help meet our communities' essential needs, while ensuring necessary measures to protect our employees, communities and partners. In response to needs across the province, OPG has donated 1 million surgical masks, 75,000 N95 masks, 17,500 Tyvek suits, and $900,000 to food banks and is supporting production of plastic face shields utilizing our 3D printing capabilities."

For the first quarter of 2020, OPG reported net income attributable to the Shareholder of $309 million.

As OPG focuses on maintaining a stable supply of electricity while prioritizing work to limit the number of people at its facilities during the pandemic, it continues to progress, where possible, critical projects and initiatives with added safety measures.  Enhanced measures to protect workers' health include physical distancing, increased cleaning and sanitization protocols at work sites and a work-from-home strategy for employees not directly involved in operating the generating facilities.

In March 2020, the Company completed construction on the refurbishment of the Darlington nuclear generating station's (GS) Unit 2 reactor. The unit is currently in the restart process and safely achieved first criticality on April 9, 2020. Unit 2 is expected to return to service in May 2020 once full power has been achieved. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the commencement of refurbishment execution for the station's Unit 3 reactor has been temporarily delayed from May 2020, with the unit continuing to generate electricity to the grid. Subject to the state of the pandemic, OPG is preparing to resume on-boarding and other pre-requisite activities beginning in May 2020 in order to facilitate the safe commencement of the Unit 3 refurbishment, with de-fuelling beginning in September 2020.

On April 29, 2020, OPG, under a new subsidiary operating as Atura Power, closed the previously announced acquisition of a portfolio of combined-cycle natural gas-fired plants in Ontario from TC Energy Corporation for approximately $2.8 billion, subject to customary closing adjustments. The portfolio includes the 900 MW Napanee GS, the 683 MW Halton Hills GS, and the remaining 50 per cent interest in the 550 MW Portlands Energy Centre. The electricity generation from these assets is an important component of maintaining the current and future reliability of Ontario's electricity system and enabling renewable electricity generation sources.

Net income attributable to the Shareholder was $309 million for the first quarter of 2020 compared to $213 million for the same period in 2019. The increase in net income is primarily attributable to higher nuclear electricity generation in the quarter. 

OPG is the largest electricity generator in the province, providing almost half of the power Ontarians rely on every day. It is also one of the most diverse generators in North America, with expertise in nuclear, hydroelectric, biomass, solar and natural gas technologies.

Ontario Power Generation Inc.'s unaudited interim consolidated financial statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis as at and for the three month period ended March 31, 2020 can be accessed on OPG's web site (www.opg.com), the Canadian Securities Administrators' web site (www.sedar.com), or can be requested from the Company.

SOURCE Ontario Power Generation Inc.