ATLANTA
GAS LIGHT COMPANY FILES MOTION
FOR
IMMEDIATE STAY OF RATE CASE ORDER
ATLANTA,
April 29, 2005 -
Atlanta Gas Light Company, a subsidiary of AGL Resources Inc. (NYSE: ATG), today
filed a Motion for Stay of Order at the Georgia Public Service Commission (GPSC)
in response to the GPSC’s 3 to 2 vote on Wednesday, April 27, 2005 to accept,
with three amendments, an Advisory Staff recommendation in connection with
Atlanta Gas Light’s rate case proceeding under Docket No. 18638-U. In an effort
to prevent the company from being harmed while it seeks reconsideration of the
decision, the motion requests that the GPSC immediately stay its April 29, 2005
order (“Order”) under Docket No. 18638-U until such time as the GPSC rules on
any petitions for rehearing, reconsideration and oral argument that Atlanta Gas
Light intends to file on or about May 9, 2005.
While the
final Order has not been issued by the GPSC, it is expected today. Atlanta Gas
Light has performed a preliminary review of the Advisory Staff’s recommendation
and the GPSC’s stated amendments related to authorized return on equity and an
energy conservation program. Atlanta Gas Light has concluded that if the GPSC
Order encompasses all the points included in the Advisory Staff’s recommendation
as amended by the GPSC, Atlanta Gas Light’s operating revenues would be reduced
by up to $25 million when the Order goes into effect on May 1,
2005.
Atlanta
Gas Light has further concluded that the company would be required to recapture
the $21 million pre-tax gain previously recognized and associated with the sale
of the Caroline Street campus in September 2003 by recording an expense and an
associated regulatory liability as of the quarter ended March 31, 2005. This
adjustment recommended by the Advisory Staff and approved by the GPSC defers the
$21 million pre-tax gain previously recorded by Atlanta Gas Light on the sale of
the Caroline Street campus in September 2003 and amortizes the gain into base
rates over a 10-year period starting when the Order goes into effect on May 1,
2005.
AGL
Resources reported first quarter 2005 net income of $88 million, or $1.15 per
basic share ($1.14 per diluted share) on Wednesday, April 27, 2005, the same
date the GPSC approved the Advisory Staff’s recommendations and three related
motions. If Atlanta Gas Light was to record the recapture of the previously
recorded pre-tax gain of $21 million associated with the sale of the Caroline
Street campus as of March 31, 2005, previously reported first quarter 2005 net
income would decrease by $13 million to $75 million. As a result, previously
reported first quarter 2005 basic and diluted earnings per share would decrease
by $0.17 to $0.98 per basic share ($0.97 per diluted share).
About
AGL Resources
AGL
Resources (NYSE: ATG), an Atlanta-based energy services holding company, serves
2.3 million
customers in six states through its utility subsidiaries - Atlanta Gas Light,
Elizabethtown Gas in New Jersey, Virginia Natural Gas, Florida City Gas,
Chattanooga Gas, and Elkton Gas in Maryland. A Fortune 1000 company that ranks
number 46 in the Fortune gas and electric utilities sector, AGL Resources
reported 2004 revenue of $1.8 billion and net income of $153 million. The
company also owns Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, an asset manager
serving natural gas wholesale customers throughout the East and Midwest.
As a 70 percent owner in the SouthStar partnership, AGL Resources markets
natural gas to consumers in Georgia under the Georgia Natural Gas brand.
AGL Networks, the company's telecommunications subsidiary, owns and operates
fiber optic networks in Atlanta and Phoenix. The company also owns and
operates Jefferson Island Storage & Hub, a high-deliverability natural gas
storage facility near the Henry Hub in Louisiana. For more information,
visit www.aglresources.com.
Forward-Looking
Statements
Certain
expectations and projections regarding our future performance referenced in this
press release are forward-looking statements. Officers may also make verbal
statements to analysts, investors, regulators, the media and others that are
forward-looking. Forward-looking statements involve matters that are not
historical facts, such as projections of our financial performance, management’s
goals and strategies for our business and assumptions regarding the foregoing.
Because these statements involve anticipated events or conditions,
forward-looking statements often include words such as “anticipate,” “assume,”
“believe,” “can,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “indicate,”
“intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “project”, ”future,” “seek,” “should,”
“target,” “will,” “would,” or similar expressions. Do not unduly rely on
forward-looking statements. They represent our expectations about the future and
are not guarantees. Our expectations are based on currently available
competitive, financial and economic data along with our operating plans. While
we believe that our expectations are reasonable in view of the currently
available information, our expectations are subject to future events, risks and
uncertainties, and there are several factors - many beyond our control - that
could cause results to differ significantly from our expectations. In addition
to the important factors described in this press release and in our filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we incorporate by reference in
this press release, the following are among the important factors that could
cause our business, results of operations or financial condition in the future
to differ significantly from those expressed in the forward-looking statements:
| · |
impact
of changes in state and federal legislation and regulation, including
orders of various state public service commissions and of the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission on the gas and electric industries and on AGL
Resources; |
| · |
actions
taken by government agencies, including decisions on base rate increase
requests by state regulators; |
| · |
performance
of equity and bond markets and the impact on pension and post-retirement
funding costs; |
| · |
impact
of acquisitions and divestitures, including: |
| o |
expected
revenue synergies and cost savings from these two acquisitions may not be
fully realized or realized within the expected time
frame; |
| · |
direct
or indirect effects on AGL Resources' business, financial condition or
liquidity resulting from a change in our credit ratings or the credit
ratings of our counterparties or competitors; |
| · |
other
risks described in AGL Resources' documents on file with the
SEC. |
There
also may be other factors that could cause results to differ significantly from
our expectations. Forward-looking statements are only as of the date they are
made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update these statements to
reflect subsequent changes.