CUP.U Caribbean Utilities Company Ltd

Caribbean Utilities Company, Ltd. is listed for trading in United States dollars on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "CUP.U".

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, May 5, 2021 /CNW/ - Caribbean Utilities Company, Ltd. (TSX: CUP.U) ("CUC" or "the Company") announced today its consolidated unaudited results for the First Quarter ended March 31, 2021 (all figures in United States dollars).

For the three months ended March 31, 2021 ("Q1 2021" or "First Quarter 2021"), net earnings decreased $0.5 million from $3.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020  ("Q1 2020" or "First Quarter 2020") to $3.3 million in Q1 2021.  The decrease in net earnings is due primarily to higher general and administration and depreciation costs.  These items were partially offset by higher electricity sales revenues and lower finance charges.

After the adjustment for dividends on the preference shares of the Company, earnings on Class A Ordinary Shares for Q1 2021 were $3.2 million or $0.09 per Class A Ordinary Share, compared to earnings on Class A Ordinary Shares of $3.7 million, or $0.11 per Class A Ordinary Share for Q1 2020.

Electricity sales revenues were $21.4 million for Q1 2021, an increase of $0.2 million when compared to electricity sales revenues of $21.2 million for Q1 2020.  Electricity sales revenues for Q1 2021 increased when compared to the same period last year due to a 6.6% base rate increase effective June 1, 2020, partially offset by a 6% reduction in kilowatt hour ("kWh") sales.

Sales for Q1 2021 totalled 143.8 million kWh, a decrease of 8.5 million kWh in comparison to 152.3 million kWh for Q1 2020.  The decrease in kWh sales for Q1 2021 is primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic which began to impact the Cayman economy in March 2020.

In spite of the continued challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic on the Cayman Islands' economy, the Company continues to focus on providing a safe, reliable and sustainable electricity service to its customers.   

There were no lost-time injuries recorded during First Quarter 2021. The safety of employees, and that of the public, remains top priority and the Company continues to improve its work processes and increase employee training, safety management and leadership, to drive lost-time incidents to zero.

The reliability of service to customers has also remained a major focus for the Company throughout the pandemic. The Average Service Availability Index, the percentage of time power was available to customers, was 99.97% for First Quarter 2021.

President and CEO, Mr. Richard Hew, says, "I am very pleased that during First Quarter 2021 there were no lost-time injuries or significant recordable safety incidents. During the period the Company also successfully completed the re-registration of its environmental management system to the ISO 14001 standard. The Company is committed to the advancement of renewable energy and continued its discussions with the Utility Regulation and Competition Office ("OfReg") to pursue a number of initiatives under the 2017 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)."

The IRP is a roadmap to meeting the electricity needs of Grand Cayman while complying with the CO₂ reductions mandated by the Paris Accord. 

Mr. Hew also stated that, "Presently there is a 5 megawatt ("MW") utility scale solar plant in Bodden Town and 8.2 MW installed on customers' premises and a further 3.4 MW under development on customers' sites. During the most recent billing month (March 2021), these existing systems generated 3.9% of the energy consumed on Grand Cayman.  In September 2020, CUC proposed a solar plus battery storage project to OfReg that would provide 20 MW of renewable energy capacity onto the grid during the day and be capable of serving peak loads at night.  The cost of energy from this project would be significantly less than rooftop solar costs and current fuel factor rates and would lead to savings for customers.  The project would provide 11% of Grand Cayman's energy needs while reducing CO₂ impacts of the sector by a corresponding amount."

The Company has also proposed projects to OfReg to relocate two of the main transmission lines from overhead infrastructure to underground ducting.  The primary benefits of these projects would be to add resilience to critical infrastructure that serves the main business and tourism sectors of Grand Cayman.

CUC's First Quarter results and related Management's Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") for the period ended March 31 2021 are attached to this release and incorporated by reference and can be accessed by clicking the link at the end of this release.

The MD&A section of this report contains a discussion of CUC's unaudited 2021 First  Quarter results, the Cayman Islands economy, liquidity and capital resources, capital expenditures and the business risks facing the Company. The release and First Quarter MD&A can be accessed at www.cuc-cayman.com (Investor Relations/Press Releases) and at www.sedar.com.

CUC provides electricity to Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, under an Electricity Generation Licence expiring in 2039 and an exclusive Electricity Transmission and Distribution Licence expiring in 2028.  Further information is available at www.cuc-cayman.com.

Certain statements in the MD&A, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements concerning anticipated future events, results, circumstances, performance or expectations with respect to the Company and its operations, including its strategy and financial performance and condition.

Forward looking statements include statements that are predictive in nature, depend upon future events or conditions, or include words such as "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "believes", "estimates", "intends", "targets", "projects", "forecasts", "schedules", or negative versions thereof and other similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as "may", "will", "should", "would" and "could". Forward looking statements are based on underlying assumptions and management's beliefs, estimates and opinions, and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations generally that may cause actual results to vary from plans, targets and estimates. Some of the important risks and uncertainties that could affect forward looking statements are described in the MD&A in the section labeled "Business Risks" and include but are not limited to operational, general economic, market and business conditions, regulatory developments and weather. CUC cautions readers that actual results may vary significantly from those expected should certain risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as required by law.

SOURCE Caribbean Utilities Company, Ltd.