AKRON, Ohio, May 15, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy (NYSE:
FE) President and Chief Executive Officer Charles E. Jones told shareholders today the
company is taking aggressive steps to make its regulated energy
delivery system smarter and more resilient in the years ahead.
Speaking to shareholders gathered for FirstEnergy's annual
meeting, Jones said the theme of this year's event, "Building a
Brighter Future," reflects the company's mission statement and
captures the spirit of what it hopes to accomplish. Earlier
this year, FirstEnergy announced plans to spend more than
$10 billion in capital investments
throughout its transmission and distribution system over the next
three years. These investments are expected to support a
projected annual operating earnings (non-GAAP) growth rate of 6 to
8 percent in FirstEnergy's regulated businesses through
2021*.
More important, Jones said, the investments will fund a number
of improvements designed to make the company's electric system more
secure and responsive to the growing energy needs of customers.
"Through our multibillion-dollar Energizing the Future
initiative, we're keeping pace with customer demand for electricity
by upgrading and modernizing our transmission system," Jones
said. "We plan to invest up to $4.8
billion from 2018 through 2021 on these improvements –
including nearly 1,200 smart grid projects that are designed to
make our system more robust, secure and resistant to extreme
weather events. Many of these projects take advantage of new
technologies that minimize the threat of physical and
cyberattacks. All of them are important to providing
customers with the power they need, when they need it."
Jones said FirstEnergy's transition to becoming a fully
regulated company – one that's better positioned to provide
enhanced service to customers while delivering stable, long-term
value to shareholders – was accelerated by the recent Chapter 11
filings of FirstEnergy Solutions, its subsidiaries and FirstEnergy
Nuclear Operating Company. The Chapter 11 filings did not
include FirstEnergy or its distribution, transmission, regulated
generation or Allegheny Energy Supply subsidiaries.
"I'm confident that FirstEnergy will emerge from this process
even stronger – with the resources we need to deliver greater value
to shareholders and provide customers with the safe, reliable and
affordable service they expect and deserve," Jones said.
A transcript of Jones' prepared remarks can be found here.
Preliminary Voting Results
FirstEnergy also announced preliminary voting results from its
2018 Annual Meeting. Shareholders reelected each of the 12
nominees to the company's Board of Directors and ratified the
appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the company's
independent registered public accounting firm. On an advisory
basis, shareholders also approved named executive officer
compensation.
Based on preliminary results, the management proposals to amend
the company's governing documents to replace existing supermajority
voting requirements with a majority voting power threshold,
implement majority voting for uncontested director elections and
implement proxy access each failed to receive the requisite
vote.
A non-binding shareholder proposal requesting a reduction in the
threshold to call special shareholder meetings also failed to
receive the requisite vote.
All preliminary voting results are subject to final
certification.
The following directors were elected to one-year terms:
- Paul T. Addison, retired
managing director of Salomon Smith
Barney (Citigroup)
- Michael J. Anderson, chairman
and retired chief executive officer of The Andersons, Inc.
- Steven J. Demetriou, chairman
and chief executive officer and director of Jacobs Engineering
Group Inc.
- Julia L. Johnson, president of
NetCommunications, LLC
- Charles E. Jones, president and
chief executive officer of FirstEnergy Corp.
- Donald T. Misheff, retired
managing partner of the Northeast
Ohio offices of Ernst & Young LLP
- Thomas N. Mitchell, retired
president, chief executive officer and director of Ontario Power
Generation Inc.
- James F. O'Neil III, former
partner, Western Commerce Group
- Christopher D. Pappas,
president, chief executive officer and director of Trinseo
S.A.
- Sandra Pianalto, retired
president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland.
- Luis A. Reyes, retired regional
administrator of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
- Dr. Jerry Sue Thornton, chief
executive officer of Dream Catcher Educational Consulting, retired
president and president emeritus of Cuyahoga
Community College.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational
excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one
of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving
customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, West Virginia,
Maryland and New York. The
company's transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles
of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic
regions. Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp or online
at www.firstenergycorp.com.
*FirstEnergy's management team cannot estimate on a
forward-looking basis the impact of special items in the context of
operating earnings (loss) per share growth projections because
special items, which could be significant, are difficult to predict
and may be highly variable. Consequently, FirstEnergy is
unable to reconcile operating earnings (loss) per share growth
projections to a GAAP measure without reasonable effort.
Forward-Looking Statements: This news release
includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 based on
information currently available to management. Such statements are
subject to certain risks and uncertainties and readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements. These statements include declarations regarding
management's intents, beliefs and current expectations. These
statements typically contain, but are not limited to, the terms
"anticipate," "potential," "expect," "forecast," "target," "will,"
"intend," "believe," "project," "estimate," "plan" and similar
words. Forward-looking statements involve estimates, assumptions,
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may
cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially
different from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, which may
include the following: the ability to successfully execute an
exit of commodity-based generation that minimizes cash outflows and
associated liabilities, including, without limitation, the losses,
guarantees, claims and other obligations of FirstEnergy Corp.,
together with its consolidated subsidiaries (FirstEnergy) as such
relate to the entities previously consolidated into FirstEnergy,
including FirstEnergy Solutions Corp.(FES), its subsidiaries and
FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC), which have recently
filed for bankruptcy protection; the potential for litigation and
demands for payment against FirstEnergy by FES and FENOC or certain
of their creditors; the risks associated with the bankruptcy cases
of FES, its subsidiaries and FENOC, including, but not limited to,
third-party motions in the cases that could adversely affect
FirstEnergy, its liquidity or results of operations; the ability to
experience growth in the Regulated Distribution and Regulated
Transmission segments and the effectiveness of our strategy to
operate as a fully regulated business; the accomplishment of our
regulatory and operational goals in connection with our
transmission and distribution investment plans, including, but not
limited to, our planned transition to forward-looking formula
rates; changes in assumptions regarding economic conditions within
our territories, assessment of the reliability of our transmission
and distribution system, or the availability of capital or other
resources supporting identified transmission and distribution
investment opportunities; the ability to accomplish or realize
anticipated benefits from strategic and financial goals, including,
but not limited to, the ability to grow earnings in our regulated
businesses, continue to reduce costs and to successfully execute
our financial plans designed to improve our credit metrics and
strengthen our balance sheet; the risks and uncertainties
associated with litigation, arbitration, mediation and like
proceedings; the uncertainties associated with the deactivation of
our remaining commodity-based generating units, including the
impact on vendor commitments, and as it relates to the reliability
of the transmission grid, the timing thereof; costs being higher
than anticipated and the success of our policies to control costs;
the uncertainty of the timing and amounts of the capital
expenditures that may arise in connection with any litigation,
including New Source Review litigation, or potential regulatory
initiatives or rulemakings; changes in customers' demand for power,
including, but not limited to, changes resulting from the
implementation of state and federal energy efficiency and peak
demand reduction mandates; economic and weather conditions
affecting future sales, margins and operations, such as significant
weather events, and all associated regulatory events or actions;
changes in national and regional economic conditions affecting
FirstEnergy and/or our major industrial and commercial customers,
and other counterparties with which we do business; the impact of
labor disruptions by our unionized workforce; the risks associated
with cyber-attacks and other disruptions to our information
technology system that may compromise our generation, transmission
and/or distribution services and data security breaches of
sensitive data, intellectual property and proprietary or personally
identifiable information regarding our business, employees,
shareholders, customers, suppliers, business partners and other
individuals in our data centers and on our networks; the impact of
the regulatory process and resulting outcomes on the matters at the
federal level and in the various states in which we do business,
including, but not limited to, matters related to rates; the impact
of the federal regulatory process on Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) regulated entities and transactions, in
particular FERC regulation of PJM Interconnection, L.L.C.
(PJM) wholesale energy and capacity markets and
cost-of-service rates, as well as FERC's compliance and enforcement
activity, including compliance and enforcement activity related to
North American Electric Reliability Corporation's mandatory
reliability standards; the uncertainties of various cost recovery
and cost allocation issues resulting from American Transmission
Systems, Incorporated's realignment into PJM; the ability to comply
with applicable state and federal reliability standards and energy
efficiency and peak demand reduction mandates; other legislative
and regulatory changes, including the federal administration's
required review and potential revision of environmental
requirements, including, but not limited to, the effects of the
United States Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Power Plan,
Coal Combustion Residuals, Cross-State Air Pollution Rule and
Mercury and Air Toxics Standards programs, including our estimated
costs of compliance, Clean Water Act (CWA) waste water effluent
limitations for power plants, and CWA 316(b) water intake
regulation; changing market conditions that could affect the
measurement of certain liabilities and the value of assets held in
our pension trusts and other trust funds, and cause us and/or our
subsidiaries to make additional contributions sooner, or in amounts
that are larger, than currently anticipated; the impact of changes
to significant accounting policies; the impact of any changes in
tax laws or regulations, including the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,
adopted December 22, 2017, or adverse
tax audit results or rulings; the ability to access the public
securities and other capital and credit markets in accordance with
our financial plans, the cost of such capital and overall condition
of the capital and credit markets affecting us and our
subsidiaries; further actions that may be taken by credit rating
agencies that could negatively affect us and/or our subsidiaries'
access to financing, increase the costs thereof, letters of credit
and other financial guarantees, and the impact of these events on
the financial condition and liquidity of FirstEnergy Corp. and/or
its subsidiaries; issues concerning the stability of domestic and
foreign financial institutions and counterparties with which we do
business; and the risks and other factors discussed from time to
time in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
filings, and other similar factors. Dividends declared from time to
time on FirstEnergy Corp.'s common stock, and thereby on
FirstEnergy Corp.'s preferred stock, during any period may in the
aggregate vary from prior periods due to circumstances considered
by FirstEnergy Corp.'s Board of Directors at the time of the actual
declarations. A security rating is not a recommendation to buy or
hold securities and is subject to revision or withdrawal at any
time by the assigning rating agency. Each rating should be
evaluated independently of any other rating. These forward-looking
statements are also qualified by, and should be read together with,
the risk factors included in our filings with the SEC, including
but not limited to the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q,
which such risk factors supersede the risk factors contained in the
Annual Report on Form 10-K, and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on
Form 10-Q or Current Reports on Form 8-K. The foregoing review of
factors also should not be construed as exhaustive. New factors
emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to
predict all such factors, nor assess the impact of any such factor
on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination
of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those
contained in any forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim
any obligation to update or revise, except as required by law, any
forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
View original content with
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/firstenergy-ceo-jones-addresses-shareholders-300648629.html
SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.