Boralex adds significant volume of 468 MW to its portfolio of projects under development and construction, which reached 6 GW in the first quarter of 2023

Highlights

• Addition of 238 MW of wind and solar projects and 230 MW of storage projects to the early stage of the project portfolio in the first quarter of 2023
  
  • Wind projects in Europe totalling 117 MW.
  • Solar projects in the United States and Europe totalling 121 MW.
  • Storage projects in Ontario totalling 230 MW.
• Production up 1% (22% on a Combined basis⁴)¹ compared to Q1-2022 due to assets commissioning and favourable wind conditions in France which offset unfavorable wind conditions in Canada. The increase on a Combined basis comes from the integration of the wind farms acquired in the United States in late 2022, production 1% (1%) above anticipated² for Q1
  
  • Wind: up 4 % (29%) from Q1-2022 and equal to (4% below) anticipated production for Q1.
  • Hydroelectric: up 10% from Q1-2022 and 18% above anticipated production for Q1.
  • Solar: down 12% from Q1-2022 and 3% below anticipated production for Q1.
• EBITDA(A)³ for the first quarter of 2023 down 1% (up 5%) and operating income down 16% (up 1%) from the same quarter of 2022
  
  • EBITDA(A) of $171 million ($192 million) in Q1-2023, down $2 million (up $9 million) from Q1-2022. EBITDA(A) for the first quarter of 2022 included an amount of $16 million attributable to certain contracts for which Boralex had to record a provision in Q3-2022 following the implementation of the 2022 Supplementary Budget Act in France.
  • Operating income of $77 million ($106 million) for Q1-2023, down $14 million (up $1 million) from Q1-2022.
• Higher net cash flows related to operating activities but lower discretionary cash flows⁴in Q1-2023
  • Net cash flows related to operating activities of $244 million in Q1, up $107 million from Q1-2022.
  • Cash flows from operations⁴ of $141 million in Q1, $5 million higher than in Q1-2022.
  • Discretionary cash flows of $65 million in Q1, down $12 million from Q1-2022. As indicated for EBITDA(A), cash flows for Q1-2022 included an additional $16 million attributable to certain contracts in France.

• Sustained financial flexibility and balance sheet strength
  
  • More than $330 million in available cash resources and authorized financing facilities⁴ as at March 31, 2023. An amount of $77 million under the revolving credit facility will be transferred to the letter of credit facility guaranteed by Export Development Canada, which was increased by $125 million bringing its total authorized amount to $200 million in April 2023.
  • Net debt to total capitalization ratio of 38% as at March 31, 2023, compared to 40% at the end of 2022.
    

MONTREAL, May 10, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Boralex Inc. (“Boralex” or the “Company”) (TSX: BLX) is pleased to report substantial growth of its project portfolio and a significant increase in production on a Combined basis in the first quarter of 2023.

“In the first quarter, we continued to implement our 2025 Strategic Plan initiatives, including through the addition of large development projects to our project portfolio and the integration of the two acquisitions completed in 2022,” said Patrick Decostre, President and Chief Executive Officer of Boralex. “The first quarter was also marked by the announcement of new programs to help accelerate the energy transition and new tendering programs in our key markets, particularly in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.”

“In the coming quarters, we will carry on with our plan to optimize revenues through a combination of corporate power purchase agreements, bidding on long-term contracts in requests for proposals and selling into the day-ahead market, particularly in France, where prices remain high. We intend to continue optimizing our capital structure by arranging specific financing for our ready-to- build projects and to make progress on integrating our many ESG initiatives into our day-to-day operation activities,” added Mr. Decostre.

1st quarter highlights

Three-month period ended March 31

In the first quarter of 2023, Boralex produced 1,696 GWh (2,286 GWh) of electricity, 1% (22%) more than the 1,681 GWh (1,875 GWh) produced in the same quarter of 2022. The increase on a Consolidated basis is coming from the commissioning of wind and solar farms in France, favourable wind conditions in France and favourable water flow conditions in North America, which more than compensated for unfavourable wind conditions in Canada. On a Combined basis the increase is attributable to the integration of the wind farm acquisition in the United States.

For the three-month period ended March 31, 2023, revenues from energy sales and feed-in premiums totalled $298 million ($328 million), 31% (32%) more than in the first quarter of 2022. The increase is attributable to the contribution of the US acquisition and commissioning of assets, as well as to the higher production and high electricity prices in France. EBITDA(A)³ amounted to $171 million ($192 million), 1% less (5% more) than in the first quarter of 2022. The slight decrease in EBITDA(A) is attributable to lower production from Canadian wind farms and new regulations on certain contracts in France. It should be noted that in the first quarter of 2022, EBITDA(A) included an amount of $16 million attributable to certain contracts for which Boralex had to record a provision in the third quarter of 2022 following the publication of the 2022 Supplementary Budget Act in France. The increase seen on a combined basis is attributable to the wind farms acquisition in the United States. Operating income amounted to $77 million ($106 million), which compares to $91 million ($105 million) for the same quarter of 2022.

Outlook

Boralex’s 2025 Strategic Plan is built around the same four strategic directions as the plan launched in 2019 – growth, diversification, customers and optimization – and six corporate targets. The details of the plan, which also sets out Boralex’s corporate social responsibility strategy, are found in the Company’s annual report. Highlights of the main achievements for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, in relation to the 2025 Strategic Plan can be found in the 2023 Interim Report 1, available in the Investors section of the Boralex website.

In the coming quarters, Boralex will continue to work on its various initiatives under the strategic plan, including project development, analysis of acquisition targets and optimization of power sales and operating costs.

Finally, to pursue its organic growth, the Company has a pipeline of projects at various stages of development defined on the basis of clearly identified criteria, totalling 4,293 MW in wind and solar projects and 1,050 MW in energy storage projects, as well as a Growth Path of 618 MW wind and solar projects and a 3 MW storage project.

Dividend declaration

The Company’s Board of Directors has authorized and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.1650 per common share. This dividend will be paid on June 15, 2023, to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 31, 2023. Boralex designates this dividend as an “eligible dividend” pursuant to paragraph 89(14) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) and all provincial legislation applicable to eligible dividends.

About Boralex

At Boralex, we have been providing affordable renewable energy accessible to everyone for over 30 years. As a leader in the Canadian market and France’s largest independent producer of onshore wind power, we also have facilities in the United States and development projects in the United Kingdom. Over the past five years, our installed capacity has more than doubled to over 3 GW. We are developing a portfolio of over 6 GW in wind, solar and storage projects, guided by our values and our corporate social responsibility (CSR) approach. Through profitable and sustainable growth, Boralex is actively participating in the fight against global warming. Thanks to our fearlessness, our discipline, our expertise and our diversity, we continue to be an industry leader. Boralex’s shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BLX.

For more information, visit www.boralex.com or www.sedar.com. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Non-IFRS measures
Performance measures

In order to assess the performance of its assets and reporting segments, Boralex uses performance measures. Management believes that these measures are widely accepted financial indicators used by investors to assess the operational performance of a company and its ability to generate cash through operations. The non-IFRS and other financial measures also provide investors with insight into the Corporation’s decision making as the Corporation uses these non-IFRS financial measures to make financial, strategic and operating decisions. The non-IFRS and other financial measures should not be considered as substitutes for IFRS measures.

These non-IFRS financial measures are derived primarily from the audited consolidated financial statements, but do not have a standardized meaning under IFRS; accordingly, they may not be comparable to similarly named measures used by other companies. Non-IFRS and other financial measures are not audited. They have important limitations as analytical tools and investors are cautioned not to consider them in isolation or place undue reliance on ratios or percentages calculated using these non-IFRS financial measures.

Combined
The following tables reconcile Consolidated financial data with data presented on a Combined basis:

EBITDA(A)

EBITDA(A) is a total of segment financial measures and represents earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, adjusted to exclude other items such as acquisition costs, other loss (gains), net loss (gain) on financial instruments and foreign exchange loss (gain), the last two items being included under Other.

Management uses EBITDA(A) to assess the performance of the Corporation's reporting segments.

EBITDA(A) is reconciled to the most comparable IFRS measure, namely, operating income, in the following table:

Cash flow from operations and discretionary cash flows

The Corporation computes the cash flow from operations and discretionary cash flows as follows:

Available cash and cash equivalents and available cash resources and authorized financing

The Corporation defines available cash and cash equivalents as well as available cash resources and authorized financing as follows:

Disclaimer regarding forward-looking statements
Certain statements contained in this release, including those related to results and performance for future periods, installed capacity targets, EBITDA(A) and discretionary cash flows, the Company’s strategic plan, business model and growth strategy, organic growth and growth through mergers and acquisitions, obtaining an investment grade credit rating, payment of a quarterly dividend, the Company’s financial targets, the partnership with Énergir and Hydro-Québec for the elaboration of three 400 MW projects for which the development will depend on Hydro-Québec's changing needs, the portfolio of renewable energy projects, the Company’s Growth Path and its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) objectives are forward-looking statements based on current forecasts, as defined by securities legislation. Positive or negative verbs such as “will,” “would,” “forecast,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “plan,” “project,” “continue,” “intend,” “assess,” “estimate” or “believe,” or expressions such as “toward,” “about,” “approximately,” “to be of the opinion,” “potential” or similar words or the negative thereof or other comparable terminology, are used to identify such statements.

Forward-looking statements are based on major assumptions, including those about the Company’s return on its projects, as projected by management with respect to wind and other factors, opportunities that may be available in the various sectors targeted for growth or diversification, assumptions made about EBITDA(A) margins, assumptions made about the sector realities and general economic conditions, competition, exchange rates as well as the availability of funding and partners. In particular, CSR targets are based on a number of assumptions, including, but not limited to, the following key assumptions: implementation of various corporate and business initiatives to reduce direct and indirect GHG emissions; availability of technologies to achieve targets; absence of new business initiatives or acquisitions of companies or technologies that would significantly increase the expected level of performance; no negative impact resulting from clarifications or amendments to international standards or the methodology used to calculate our CSR performance and disclosure; sufficient participation and collaboration of our suppliers in setting their own targets in line with Boralex’s CSR initiatives; the ability to find diverse and competent talent; education and organizational engagement to help achieve our CSR targets. While the Company considers these factors and assumptions to be reasonable, based on the information currently available to the Company, they may prove to be inaccurate.

Boralex wishes to clarify that, by their very nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and that its results, or the measures it adopts, could be significantly different from those indicated or underlying those statements, or could affect the degree to which a given forward-looking statement is achieved. The main factors that may result in any significant discrepancy between the Company’s actual results and the forward-looking financial information or expectations expressed in forward-looking statements include the general impact of economic conditions, fluctuations in various currencies, fluctuations in energy prices, the Company’s financing capacity, competition, changes in general market conditions, industry regulations and amendments thereto, particularly the legislation, regulations and emergency measures that could be implemented for time to time to address high energy prices in Europe, litigation and other regulatory issues related to projects in operation or under development, as well as other factors listed in the Company’s filings with the various securities commissions.

Unless otherwise specified by the Company, forward-looking statements do not take into account the effect that transactions, non-recurring items or other exceptional items announced or occurring after such statements have been made may have on the Company’s activities. There is no guarantee that the results, performance or accomplishments, as expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, will materialize. Readers are therefore urged not to rely unduly on these forward-looking statements.

Unless required by applicable securities legislation, Boralex’s management assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements in light of new information, future events or other changes.

Percentage figures are calculated in thousands of dollars.