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Black Hills Corp. falls to 3Q loss
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By The Associated Press
| 10/30/2009 |
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SIOUX FALLS (AP) -- Diversified energy company Black Hills Corp. said it fell to a third-quarter loss as continued low natural gas prices reduced its oil and gas and energy marketing income and lowered electric utility sales margins.
The Rapid City, S.D., company late Thursday reported a net loss of $2.2 million, or 6 cents per share, in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with a profit of $164.9 million, or $4.29 per share, in the previous year's quarter.
Black Hills said the recent quarter's results included a $5.7 million, or 15 cents per share, loss attributed to interest rate swaps, typically used to exchange fixed-rate interest payments for floating-rate interest payments to hedge, profit from changes in interest rates and manage risk.
Revenue fell 23 percent to $225.8 million from $291.9 million in the year-ago period.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a profit of 19 cents per share on $215.2 million in revenue.
Black Hills expects its full-year earnings from continuing operations to be in the range of $1.75 to $1.85 per share, and its 2010 earnings to be between $1.80 and $2.05 per share. Analysts are looking for per-share earnings of $1.87 in 2009 and $1.73 in 2010.
"We are not satisfied with our bottom-line results in 2009, but as our guidance for 2010 indicates, we are confident that planned capital expenditures will lead to strong earnings growth in the coming years," David R. Emery, Black Hills chairman, president and chief executive, said in a statement.
The company said its Black Hills Power subsidiary filed requests for electric revenue increases in South Dakota and Wyoming to recover costs from the Wygen III power plant under construction near Gillette, Wyo., other assets and increased operating expenses.
In South Dakota, the company is looking for an additional $32 million in annual utility revenue and it anticipates the new rates will take effect on April 1. In Wyoming, Black Hills Power is seeking a $3.8 million increase effective in 2010.
Black Hills Corp. on Wednesday announced that the U.S. Department of Energy selected each of its electric utility subsidiaries -- Black Hills Energy-Colorado Electric, Black Hills Power and Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power -- for $16.7 million in smart grid investment grant funding that's part of the federal stimulus package.
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©Madison Daily Leader 2009
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