Montreal, May 10, 2004 – Boralex Power
Income Fund (the "Fund") announces that
for the first quarter ended March 31, 2004, revenue
from energy sales were up 59% at $32.4 million,
compared to $20.4 million for the same quarter
in 2003. The hydroelectric sector alone generated
43.4% of the Fund's consolidated revenue, compared
to 9.4% for the same quarter last year. Earnings
before amortization, depreciation, financial expenses
and income taxes ("EBITDA") amounted
to $21.1 million, compared to $10.8 million for
the same period in 2003, an increase of 95%. Consequently,
net earnings totaled $12.6 million or $0.21 per
trust unit, compared to $7.5 million or $0.18
per trust unit a year earlier.
This growth is primarily due to the contribution
of the hydroelectric power stations acquired on
September 30, 2003, combined with the excellent
performance of other power stations in this sector
and the higher profitability of the wood-residue
power stations.
In the first quarter ended March 31, 2004, distributions
to unitholders totaled $13.3 million, compared
to $8.9 million for the same period in 2003. Note
that at October 22, 2003, the Fund announced an
increase of approximately 3% over previous monthly
distributions, due to the acquisition of two hydroelectric
power stations in the United States, thereby raising
the distribution per trust unit from $0.0729 to
$0.0750.
As at March 31, 2004, the balance of cash and
cash equivalents, including reserves for general
purposes and major maintenance, was $40.8 million,
or the equivalent of $0.69 per trust unit, compared
to $33.5 million, or $0.57 per trust unit as at
December 31, 2003.
Since the September 2003 acquisition of two hydroelectric
power stations in the United States, the Fund
has been exposed to exchange rate fluctuations
in US and Canadian currency. Since the Fund makes
its distributions in Canadian dollars, and wishes
to ensure the distributions remain stable, it
has completed transactions in derivative financial
instruments. The combined impact of the two transactions
will ensure that the Fund receives C$1.3994 per
US dollar exchanged, on approximately 65% of the
cash flow generated in US dollars, for the next
five years.
Furthermore, Standard & Poors (S&P) has
reassigned the Fund the stability rating SR-2
(positive outlook) following the September 30,
2003 acquisitions, and the Dominion Bond Rating
System (DBRS) recently revised upwards the rating
the Fund has held since it was created, increasing
it from STA-3 (high) to STA-2 (low), due to the
quality of its assets and the expected long-term
stability of distributions to unitholders.
The Fund's first-quarter performance is better
than expected and bodes well for the current year.
The exceptional hydrological conditions, particularly
in the northeastern US, the gradual improvement
in the productivity of the Senneterre wood-residue
power station and the contribution from the natural
gas cogenerating station, along with the implementation
of a long-term financial strategy, should further
contribute to growth in results and ensure stable
distributions to unitholders.
Boralex Power Income Fund is an unincorporated
open-ended trust that indirectly owns ten power
generating stations located in the province of
Québec and the United States producing
energy from different sources including wood-residue
or natural gas-fired thermal and cogenerating
facilities as well as hydroelectric power stations.
In total, these power stations have an installed
capacity of 190.0 MW. The Fund’s units are
listed for trading on The Toronto Stock Exchange
under the symbol BPT.UN.
Click
here to consult Results for First Quarter of 2004
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