Total generation output declined by 6.5% to total 13.2 TWh, reflecting the sale of the Keystone and Conemaugh units last fall. PSEG Power’s CCGT fleet produced 5.1 TWh of output, up 16%, reflecting the addition of Bridgeport Harbor 5 which was placed into operation in June 2019. The nuclear fleet operated at a capacity factor of 94.9% for the first quarter, producing 8 TWh representing 61% of total generation. Higher output from Hope Creek and Salem Unit 2 partly offset a month-long repair outage at Salem unit 1, resulting in a 2% decrease in nuclear output for the quarter.
PSEG Power continues to forecast output for 2020 of 50 - 52 TWh. For the remainder of 2020 Power has hedged approximately 95% - 100% of production at an average price of $36 per MWh. For 2021, Power has hedged 55% - 60% of forecast production of 50 – 52 TWh at an average price of $35 per MWh. Power is also forecasting output for 2022 of 50 – 52 TWh. Approximately 25% - 30% of Power’s output in 2022 is hedged at an average price of $35 per MWh.
The forecast of PSEG Power’snon-GAAP Operating Earnings for 2020 remains unchanged at $345 million - $435 million as does our estimate ofnon-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA of $950 million - $1,050 million. Adjusted EBITDA for Q1 2020 includes expenses of $35 million related to the purchase of NJ tax credits as part of the 2019 NJ Technology Tax Benefit Transfer Program. The benefit from the program’s tax credits is included in the income tax expense line item and more than offsets the expenses incurred for the purchase. The net benefit for the quarter is $5 million. There were no similar tax credit transactions in Q1 2019.
PSEG Enterprise/Other
PSEG Enterprise/Other reported a Net Loss of $5 million, $(0.01) per share, for the first quarter of 2020 compared to Net Income of $1 million, $0.00 per share, for the first quarter of 2019. The Net Loss for the first quarter of 2020 reflects higher interest and tax expenses at the Parent, partially offset by ongoing contributions from PSEG Long Island.
For 2020, the forecast for PSEG Enterprise/Other remains unchanged at a Net Loss of $5 million.
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Public Service Enterprise Group Inc. (PSEG) (NYSE: PEG) is a publicly traded diversified energy company with approximately 13,000 employees. Headquartered in Newark, N.J., PSEG’s principal operating subsidiaries are: Public Service Electric and Gas Co. (PSE&G), PSEG Power and PSEG Long Island. PSEG is a Fortune 500 company included in the S&P 500 Index and has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for North America for 12 consecutive years (https://corporate.pseg.com).
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Management usesnon-GAAP Operating Earnings in its internal analysis, and in communications with investors and analysts, as a consistent measure for comparing PSEG’s financial performance to previous financial results.Non-GAAP Operating Earnings exclude the impact of returns (losses) associated with the Nuclear Decommissioning Trust (NDT),Mark-to-Market (MTM) accounting and materialone-time items such as the revaluation of deferred tax liabilities.
Management believes the presentation ofnon-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA for PSEG Power is useful to investors and other users of our financial statements in evaluating operating performance because it provides them with an additional tool to compare business performance across companies and across periods. Management also believes thatnon-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA is widely used by investors to measure operating performance without regard to items such as income tax expense, interest expense and depreciation and amortization, which can vary substantially from company to company depending upon, among other things, the book value of assets, capital structure and whether assets were constructed or acquired.Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA also allows investors and other users to assess the underlying financial performance of our fleet before management’s
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