Black Hills Corp. and NorthWestern Energy are merging in an all-stock, tax-free deal creating a $7.8 billion market cap utility company serving 2.1 million customers across eight states, with the merger expected to enhance efficiency, investment, and energy reliability, pending regulatory approval.
The California Public Utilities Commission has approved a PG&E rate hike of about $5 a month to compensate for vegetation management efforts aimed at reducing wildfire risk. This comes after a 13 percent increase in January and precedes another potential hike to cover storm damage repairs. PG&E expects total rate hikes to amount to about $50 more per average customer by 2024, while facing frustration from ratepayers and critics.
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Shares of NextEra Energy have dropped over 20% in the past week due to its renewable energy subsidiary, NextEra Energy Partners, cutting its dividend growth rate. The company is facing challenges with surging interest rates impacting its cost of capital, making it expensive to use debt and equity funding for acquisitions. However, NextEra Energy has demonstrated alternative ways to recycle capital, such as selling assets and investing in higher-return organic growth projects. The recent sell-off has made the stock appear undervalued, with a lower valuation and higher dividend yield, making it an attractive option for investors seeking a dividend growth stock in the renewable energy sector.
Hawaiian Electric Industries (HEI) has engaged with boutique advisory firm Guggenheim Securities for financial advice following scrutiny over its role in the Maui wildfires, which caused a more than 50% drop in its market value. The utility company is seeking expert advice to position itself as a financially healthy local utility. The cause of the wildfires is still under investigation, but Hawaiian Electric has been blamed in class-action lawsuits for failing to shut off power lines despite warnings of high winds. Fitch downgraded Hawaiian Electric's credit rating to junk status, citing potential liabilities above $3.8 billion, while Bank of America Global Research cut its price target on the company.
Thousands of people in the ArkLaTex region are currently without power due to a widespread outage, leaving them without electricity. The cause of the outage is currently unknown, and utility companies are working to restore power as quickly as possible.
NiSource will sell a minority stake in its unit, NIPSCO, to Blackstone's infrastructure unit for $2.15 billion. The deal will help NiSource cut debt and fund its transition towards renewable energy. NIPSCO is an integrated electric- and gas-distribution unit that operates in Indiana and serves about 1.3 million customers. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2023.
Austin Energy's General Manager, Jackie Sargent, has retired effective immediately. Sargent was selected to lead the utility in 2016 and was with the company during the February 2021 and February 2023 ice storms where thousands of Austin Energy customers were without power for several days. Austin Energy is expected to provide a statement with more details later Friday.