Stockwatch Energy - Today - SU Here in Canada, oil sands giant Suncor Energy Inc. (SU) added 88 cents to $45.11 on 15.6 million shares. It has agreed to sell its wind and solar assets to Canadian Utilities for $730-million. Interim president and chief executive officer Kris Smith cheered that the sale will enhance Suncor's focus on hydrogen, renewable energy and other projects that are "more complementary to its core businesses as the company progresses to net zero by 2050."
Investors seemed mildly pleased. The assets include eight wind power projects across Saskatchewan, Alberta and Ontario, along with the proposed Fort Mile solar project in Alberta. They are non-core assets, and Suncor already announced in April that it was putting them up for sale, billing this as a move to "accelerate progress toward its objective to be a net-zero company by 2050." More measurably, the sale should accelerate Suncor's progress toward reducing its net debt to $9-billion, the milestone at which it has hinted at a possible dividend increase. Net debt was $15.6-billion as of June 30. The current quarterly dividend of 47 cents represents a yield of 4.2 per cent.