Spectra Energy Reports Fourth Quarter and Year-End 2010 Results

HOUSTON, Feb. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

• 2010 ongoing net income up 34 percent – notable increase a result of expansion projects placed into service and a recovery in commodity prices.
• $1.57 ongoing 2010 diluted earnings per share (EPS); exceeded 2010 ongoing target of $1.42 by 11 percent.
• Placed $900 million of expansion projects into service, delivering returns on capital employed well in excess of targeted 10-12 percent range.

Spectra Energy Corp (NYSE: SE) today reported 2010 net income from controlling interests of $1.05 billion, or $1.61 diluted EPS, compared with $849 million, or $1.32 diluted EPS in 2009. Ongoing 2010 net income was $1.02 billion, or $1.57 diluted EPS, compared with $759 million, $1.18 diluted EPS, in the prior year.

The company reported 2010 fourth quarter net income from controlling interests of $320 million, or $0.49 diluted EPS, compared with $220 million, or $0.34 EPS, in the prior year quarter. Ongoing net income was $303 million, or $0.47 EPS, versus $218 million, or $0.33 EPS, during the prior year quarter.

2010 year-end and fourth quarter results reflect strong earnings growth from expansion projects brought into service, improved commodity prices and a stronger Canadian dollar.

2010 Business Highlights

• Met a major milestone on the New Jersey-New York Expansion Project with the filing of the certificate application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
• Completed Phase 1 of TEMAX/TIME III Project to transport new Rockies natural gas supplies to major U.S. Northeast markets.
• Completed Algonquin East-to-West Expansion Project to deliver new gas supplies, including LNG-sourced supplies, into U.S. Northeast markets.
• Successfully executed on the Fort Nelson Expansion Project in Western Canada, with 9 of 10 projects completed on time and on budget; final project scheduled for completion in 2011, per plan.
• Enhanced Gulf Coast storage position with Bobcat Gas Storage acquisition.
• Field Services advanced key growth projects in Denver-Julesburg Basin, Permian Basin and Eagle Ford.

"Spectra Energy and its investors experienced a very good year in 2010. We targeted a 20 percent increase in earnings over the previous year and nicely surpassed that goal, delivering a 34 percent increase with each of our businesses registering impressive gains," said Greg Ebel, president and chief executive officer, Spectra Energy Corp. "We not only benefited from expansion projects placed in service and growth in our fee-based businesses, but with the rebound in commodity prices, our Field Services business generated distributions of nearly $300 million to the company."

"We remain acutely focused on our plan to profitably invest more than $5 billion in expansion capital over the next five years, which could allow us to realize incremental annual EBIT of $500 to $600 million for returns on capital employed in the 10 to 12 percent range," Ebel continued.

SEGMENT RESULTS

U.S. Transmission            

U.S. Transmission reported fourth quarter 2010 earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $247 million, compared with $204 million in fourth quarter 2009.  The 2010 period included a $10 million special item related to a customer bankruptcy settlement.

Excluding the above special item, ongoing EBIT for fourth quarter 2010 was $237 million, compared with $204 million in the prior year quarter.  The 2010 quarter benefited from expansion projects, including TEMAX/TIME III and Algonquin East-to-West and the Bobcat Storage acquisition.

Year-end reported EBIT for U.S. Transmission was $948 million, compared with $894 million in 2009.

Distribution

Distribution reported fourth quarter 2010 EBIT of $127 million, compared with $96 million in fourth quarter 2009. This improvement is mainly due to an increase in storage and transportation revenues, lower operating costs, higher customer usage because of colder weather and a stronger Canadian dollar.

Year-end reported EBIT for Distribution was $409 million, compared with $336 million in 2009.

Western Canada Transmission & Processing

Western Canada Transmission & Processing reported fourth quarter 2010 EBIT of $131 million, compared with $120 million in fourth quarter 2009.  The segment benefited from improved results in the base gathering and processing business, primarily driven by higher contracted volumes from expansions in both the Horn River and Montney areas of British Columbia.  The segment also benefited from the effect of a stronger Canadian dollar.  These increases were partially offset by lower earnings at the Empress natural gas liquids (NGL) business.

Year-end reported EBIT for Western Canada Transmission & Processing was $409 million, compared with $343 million in 2009.

Field Services

Field Services reported fourth quarter 2010 EBIT of $108 million, compared with $77 million in fourth quarter 2009. The increase in earnings was mostly driven by higher commodity prices, a gain associated with ongoing unit issuances by DCP Midstream's master limited partnership and lower maintenance costs, partially offset by lower volumes in the Mid-Continent region.

During fourth quarter 2010, crude oil averaged approximately $85 per barrel, compared with approximately $76 per barrel in the prior year quarter. The NGL-to-crude relationship averaged 52 percent during the 2010 quarter versus 53 percent in fourth quarter 2009. This equates to an NGL price of $1.06 per gallon during the 2010 quarter versus $0.96 per gallon in prior year quarter. NYMEX natural gas averaged approximately $3.80 per million British thermal unit (MMBtu) versus $4.17 per MMBtu during the same period in 2009.

DCP Midstream paid distributions of $60 million to Spectra Energy for the quarter and $288 million for the year. 

Year-end reported EBIT for Field Services was $335 million, compared with $296 million in 2009.  

Other

"Other" reported a net benefit of $15 million in fourth quarter 2010, including a benefit of $31 million related to an early termination notice of capacity contracts the company held on the Alliance pipeline.  Excluding this special item, ongoing EBIT for fourth quarter 2010 was $16 million net costs, compared with net costs of $28 million in fourth quarter 2009.  Fourth quarter 2010 benefited from lower captive insurance losses and other corporate costs. 

Year-end reported net costs for "Other" were $38 million, compared with $74 million in 2009.

Interest Expense

Interest expense was $154 million for fourth quarter 2010, consistent with fourth quarter 2009.  

Interest expense for 2010 was $630 million, compared with $610 million in 2009.

Income Taxes

Fourth quarter 2010 income tax expense from continuing operations was $141 million, compared with $92 million reported in fourth quarter 2009. The increase resulted primarily from higher earnings in fourth quarter 2010.

Additional Information

Additional information about fourth quarter and year-end 2010 earnings can be obtained via the Spectra Energy Web site: www.spectraenergy.com. The analyst call is scheduled for today, Thursday, February 3, 2011, at 9:00 a.m. CT. The webcast can be accessed via the Investors Section of Spectra Energy's Web site or the conference call can be accessed by dialing (888) 252-3715 in the United States or Canada, or (706) 634-8942 for International. The conference code is "35168258" or "Spectra Energy Quarterly Earnings Call."

Please call five to ten minutes prior to the scheduled start time. A replay of the call will be available until 5:00 p.m. CT, May 4, 2011, by dialing (800) 642-1687 with conference ID 35168258. The international replay number is (706) 645-9291, with above conference ID. A replay and transcript also will be available by accessing the Investors Section of the company's Web site.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We use ongoing net income and ongoing diluted EPS as measures to evaluate operations of the company.  These measures are non-GAAP financial measures as they represent net income from controlling interests and diluted EPS, adjusted for special items and discontinued operations. Special items represent certain charges and credits which we believe will not be recurring on a regular basis, and discontinued operations do not represent our ongoing core business. We believe that the presentation of ongoing net income and ongoing diluted EPS provide useful information to investors, as it allows them to more accurately compare our ongoing performance across periods.

The primary performance measure used by us to evaluate segment performance is segment EBIT from continuing operations, which at the segment level represents earnings from continuing operations (both operating and non-operating) before interest and taxes, net of noncontrolling interests related to those earnings. We consider segment EBIT, which is the GAAP measure used to report segment results, to be a good indicator of each segment's operating performance from its continuing operations as it represents the results of our ownership interest in operations without regard to financing methods or capital structures.

We also use ongoing segment EBIT and Other EBIT (net costs) as measures of performance. Ongoing segment and Other EBIT are non-GAAP financial measures as they represent reported segment and Other EBIT adjusted for special items. We believe that the presentation of ongoing segment and Other EBIT provide useful information to investors, as they allow investors to more accurately compare a segment's or Other's ongoing performance across periods. The most directly comparable GAAP measures for ongoing segment or Other EBIT are reported segment or Other EBIT, which represent EBIT from continuing operations, including any special items.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements are based on our beliefs and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by terms and phrases such as: anticipate, believe, intend, estimate, expect, continue, should, could, may, plan, project, predict, will, potential, forecast, and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially different from the results predicted.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in any forward-looking statement include, but are not limited to: state, federal and foreign legislative and regulatory initiatives that affect cost and investment recovery, have an effect on rate structure, and affect the speed at and degree to which competition enters the natural gas industries; outcomes of litigation and regulatory investigations, proceedings or inquiries; weather and other natural phenomena, including the economic, operational and other effects of hurricanes and storms; the timing and extent of changes in commodity prices, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates; general economic conditions, including the risk of a prolonged economic slowdown or decline, or the risk of delay in a recovery, which can affect the long-term demand for natural gas and related services; potential effects arising from terrorist attacks and any consequential or other hostilities; changes in environmental, safety and other laws and regulations; results and costs of financing efforts, including the ability to obtain financing on favorable terms, which can be affected by various factors, including credit ratings and general market and economic conditions; increases in the cost of goods and services required to complete capital projects; declines in the market prices of equity and debt securities and resulting funding requirements for defined benefit pension plans; growth in opportunities, including the timing and success of efforts to develop U.S. and Canadian pipeline, storage, gathering, processing and other infrastructure projects and the effects of competition; the performance of natural gas transmission and storage, distribution, and gathering and processing facilities; the extent of success in connecting natural gas supplies to gathering, processing and transmission systems and in connecting to expanding gas markets; the effects of accounting pronouncements issued periodically by accounting standard-setting bodies; conditions of the capital markets during the periods covered by the forward-looking statements; and the ability to successfully complete merger, acquisition or divestiture plans; regulatory or other limitations imposed as a result of a merger, acquisition or divestiture; and the success of the business following a merger, acquisition or divestiture.  These factors, as well as additional factors that could affect our forward-looking statements, are described under the headings "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information" in our 2009 Form 10-K, filed on February 25, 2010, and in our other filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which are available via the SEC's Web site at www.sec.gov. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the events described in the forward-looking statements might not occur or might occur to a different extent or at a different time than we have described. All forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Spectra Energy Corp (NYSE: SE), a FORTUNE 500 company, is one of North America's premier natural gas infrastructure companies serving three key links in the natural gas value chain: gathering and processing, transmission and storage, and distribution. For nearly a century, Spectra Energy and its predecessor companies have developed critically important pipelines and related infrastructure connecting natural gas supply sources to premium markets. Based in Houston, Texas, the company operates in the United States and Canada approximately 19,100 miles of transmission pipeline, more than 305 billion cubic feet of storage, as well as natural gas gathering and processing, natural gas liquids operations and local distribution assets. The company also has a 50 percent ownership in DCP Midstream, one of the largest natural gas gatherers and processors in the United States. Spectra Energy is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America Indexes and the U.S. S&P 500 Carbon Disclosure Project's Leadership Index for both Carbon Performance and Disclosure. For more information, visit www.spectraenergy.com.