Callaway Energy Center returns to full power, delivering customers carbon-free energy

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Aug 09, 2021, 08:45 ET

FULTON, Mo., Aug. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ameren Missouri announced today that Callaway Energy Center is now operating at full power, delivering carbon-free energy to customers. The safe return to service follows an outage to rewind the generator, which is a non-nuclear component of the energy center.

"Crews across Ameren have used the outage time to improve operations throughout the energy center, with the proactive work expected to sustain solid operations for years to come," said Fadi Diya, senior vice president and chief nuclear officer for Ameren Missouri, a subsidiary of Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE). "The safe, sustainable operation of Callaway, and the clean energy we produce, is fundamental in achieving Ameren's ambitious carbon reduction targets."

Ameren's goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 includes carbon reductions of 50% by 2030 and 85% by 2040, both based on 2005 levels. The ongoing, safe and efficient operation of Callaway and Ameren Missouri's other energy centers is key to reaching these goals while keeping rates affordable for customers. Ameren Missouri's 2020 Integrated Resource Plan sets forth the company's preferred plan to transform its electricity generation portfolio over the coming decades.

Ameren Missouri has been providing electric and gas service for more than 100 years, and the company's electric rates are among the lowest in the nation. Ameren Missouri's mission is to power the quality of life for its 1.2 million electric and 132,000 natural gas customers in central and eastern Missouri. The company's service area covers 64 counties and more than 500 communities, including the greater St. Louis area. For more information, visit Ameren.com/Missouri or follow us on Twitter at @AmerenMissouri or Facebook.com/AmerenMissouri.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements in this release not based on historical facts are considered "forward-looking" and, accordingly, involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed. Although such forward-looking statements have been made in good faith and are based on reasonable assumptions, there is no assurance that the expected results will be achieved. These statements include (without limitation) statements as to future expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, strategies, targets, estimates, objectives, events, conditions, and financial performance. In connection with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, we are providing this cautionary statement to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. The following factors, in addition to those discussed under Risk Factors in Ameren's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, and elsewhere in this release and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could cause actual results to differ materially from management expectations suggested in such forward-looking statements:

regulatory, judicial, or legislative actions, and any changes in regulatory policies and ratemaking determinations, that may change regulatory recovery mechanisms;
the length and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and its impacts on our business continuity plans and our results of operations, financial position, and liquidity, including but not limited to the health and welfare of our workforce and contractors, supplier disruptions, and delays in the completion of construction projects;
the effects of changes in federal, state, or local laws and other governmental actions, including monetary, fiscal, and energy policies;
the effects of changes in federal, state, or local tax laws, regulations, interpretations, or rates, and challenges to the tax positions taken by the Ameren Companies, if any, as well as resulting effects on customer rates;
the effects on energy prices and demand for our services resulting from technological advances, including advances in customer energy efficiency, electric vehicles, electrification of various industries, energy storage, and private generation sources, which generate electricity at the site of consumption and are becoming more cost-competitive;
our ability to control costs and make substantial investments in our businesses, including our ability to recover costs, investments, and our allowed returns on equity within frameworks established by our regulators, while maintaining affordability of our services for our customers;
the cost and availability of fuel, such as low-sulfur coal, natural gas, and enriched uranium used to produce electricity; the cost and availability of purchased power, zero emission credits, renewable energy credits, emission allowances, and natural gas for distribution; and the level and volatility of future market prices for such commodities and credits;
disruptions in the delivery of fuel, failure of our fuel suppliers to provide adequate quantities or quality of fuel, or lack of adequate inventories of fuel, including nuclear fuel assemblies from the one Nuclear Regulatory Commission-licensed supplier of Ameren Missouri's Callaway Energy Center assemblies;
the ability to obtain sufficient insurance, including insurance for Ameren Missouri's nuclear and coal-fired energy centers, or, in the absence of insurance, the ability to timely recover uninsured losses from our customers;
the inability of our counterparties to meet their obligations with respect to contracts, credit agreements, and financial instruments; the impact of weather conditions and other natural phenomena on us and our customers, including the impact of system outages;

the construction, installation, performance, and cost recovery of generation, transmission and distribution assets;
the effects of failures of electric generation, electric and natural gas transmission or distribution, or natural gas storage facilities systems and equipment, which could result in unanticipated liabilities or unplanned outages;
Ameren Missouri's ability to recover the remaining investment and decommissioning costs associated with the retirement of an energy center, as well as the ability to earn a return on that remaining investment and those decommissioning costs;
the impact of current environmental laws and new, more stringent, or changing requirements, including those related to NSR and CO₂, other emissions and discharges, cooling water intake structures, CCR, energy efficiency, and wildlife protection, that could limit or terminate the operation of certain of Ameren Missouri's energy centers, increase our operating costs or investment requirements, result in an impairment of our assets, cause us to sell our assets, reduce our customers' demand for electricity or natural gas, or otherwise have a negative financial effect;
the impact of complying with renewable energy standards in Missouri and Illinois and with the zero emission standard in Illinois;
Ameren Missouri's ability to construct and/or acquire wind, solar, and other renewable energy generation facilities, retire energy centers, and implement new or existing customer energy-efficiency programs, including any such construction, acquisition, retirement, or implementation in connection with its Smart Energy Plan, the 2020 Integrated Resource Plan, or our emissions reduction goals, and to recover its cost of investment, related return, and, in the case of customer energy-efficiency programs, any lost margins in a timely manner, which is affected by the ability to obtain all necessary regulatory and project approvals, including certificates of convenience and necessity from the Missouri Public Service Commission ("MoPSC") or any other required approvals for the addition of renewable resources;
the availability of federal production and investment tax credits related to renewable energy and Ameren Missouri's ability to use such credits; the cost of wind, solar, and other renewable generation and storage technologies; and our ability to obtain timely interconnection agreements with the Midwest Independent System Operator, Inc. ("MISO") or other regional transmission organizations ("RTOs") at an acceptable cost for each facility;
advancements in carbon-free generation and storage technologies, and constructive federal and state energy and economic policies with respect to those technologies;
the impact of complying with renewable energy standards in Missouri and Illinois and with the zero emission standard in Illinois;
Ameren Missouri's ability to construct and/or acquire wind, solar, and other renewable energy generation facilities, retire energy centers, and implement new or existing customer energy-efficiency programs, including any such construction, acquisition, retirement, or implementation in connection with its Smart Energy Plan, the 2020 IRP, or our emissions reduction goals, and to recover its cost of investment, related return, and, in the case of customer energy-efficiency programs, any lost margins in a timely manner, which is affected by the ability to obtain all necessary regulatory and project approvals, including certificates of convenience and necessity from the MoPSC or any other required approvals for the addition of renewable resources;
the availability of federal production and investment tax credits related to renewable energy and Ameren Missouri's ability to use such credits; the cost of wind, solar, and other renewable generation and storage technologies; and our ability to obtain timely interconnection agreements with the MISO or other RTOs at an acceptable cost for each facility;
advancements in carbon-free generation and storage technologies, and constructive federal and state energy and economic policies with respect to those technologies;
labor disputes, work force reductions, changes in future wage and employee benefits costs, including those resulting from changes in discount rates, mortality tables, returns on benefit plan assets, and other assumptions;
the impact of negative opinions of us or our utility services that our customers, investors, legislators, or regulators may have or develop, which could result from a variety of factors, including failures in system reliability, failure to implement our investment plans or to protect sensitive customer information, increases in rates, negative media coverage, or concerns about environmental, social, and/or governance practices;
the effects of strategic initiatives, including mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures;
legal and administrative proceedings; and
acts of sabotage, war, terrorism, or other intentionally disruptive acts.

New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all of such factors, nor can it assess the impact of each such factor on the business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained or implied in any forward-looking statement. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements. Except to the extent required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future events.

SOURCE Ameren Missouri