Boralex announces net earnings of $17M for the second quarter of 2024, an increase in its financial flexibility and on-track progress of projects in growth path totaling 851 MW

MONTREAL, Aug. 14, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Boralex Inc. (“Boralex” or the “Company”) (TSX: BLX) is pleased to report a 9 % (7 % on a combined1 basis)2 increase in EBITDA(A)1 in spite of a decrease in production (slight increase on a combined basis) for the second quarter of 2024. For the six months period ending June 30, 2024, the Company posted increases of 14 % (11 %) in EBITDA(A), 23 % (21 %) in operating income and 41 % in net earnings.

Highlights

Second quarter financial results

• EBITDA(A)higherthaninQ2-2023,operatingincomeandnetearningsdown
  • Production down 2% (up 1% on a combined basis) compared to Q2-2023. Total production 11% (8%) below anticipated production1 for Q2 owing to weather conditions and more extensive curtailments in France during the quarter.
  • EBITDA(A) of $130 million ($152 million) in Q2-2024, up $11 million ($9 million) from Q2-2023 owing to the positive impact of the strategy to optimize electricity selling prices and the contribution of new sites commissioned in France, as well as an increase in the contribution from joint ventures.
  • Operating income of $35 million ($58 million) in Q2-2024, $3 million less ($1 million more) than in Q2-2023.
  • Net earnings of $17 million in Q2-2024, down $2 million from Q2-2023.

• Higherdiscretionarycashflows1andsustainedbalancesheet strength
  • Discretionary cash flows of $17 million in Q2-2024, up $13 million from Q2-2023.
  • $138 milion in net cash flows related to operating activities in Q2-2024.
  • $621 million in available cash resources and authorized financing1 as at June 30, 2024, $46 million more than at the end of the previous quarter.

Update on development and construction activities

• Secured,under-constructionandready-to-buildprojectsprogressingaccordingtoplan
  • Commissioning of a 21 MW wind farm and a 13 MW solar farm in France.
  • Turbine assembly under way for the Apuiat wind farm in Quebec (total 200 MW, Boralex’s share 100 MW) and the Limekiln wind farm in Scotland (106 MW), both scheduled for commissioning in late 2024.
  • Construction scheduled to start in August on the Hagersville (300 MW) and Tilbury (80 MW) storage projects in Ontario.
  • On-track development of the Des Neiges Sud project in Quebec (total 400 MW, Boralex’s share 133 MW).

• ParticipationinrequestsforproposalsinNorthAmericaandEuropeinearlyAugust
  • Submission of solar projects under the NYSERDA request for proposals in New York State.
  • Submission of wind projects under Allocation Round 6 (AR6) in the United Kingdom.
• 211MWaddedtotheearly-stageprojectpipeline
  • 46 MW for solar projects in North America.
  • 165 MW for solar and wind projects in Europe.

“We are proud of the work done by our teams since the beginning of the year, enabling us to make good progress on our many projects, in particular the construction of the Apuiat project in Quebec and the Limekiln project in Scotland, both slated for commissioning by the end of the year. Limekiln was in fact the object of our first-ever Scottish financing, which took place during the quarter. We are also poised to start construction in the next few weeks on the Hagersville and Tilbury battery projects in Ontario, followed by the Des Neiges Sud project in Quebec. We are very confident about the future of our industry. Hydro-Québec’s recent announcements regarding near-term development of 10 GW of large-scale projects in Quebec and the forthcoming Ontario and British Columbia requests for proposals are very promising developments. The current strong demand for corporate power purchase agreements and tendering processes under way in New York State, the United Kingdom and France are also very positive indications of the growth potential in our target markets,” said Boralex President and CEO Patrick Decostre.

“The impact of our strategy to optimize electricity selling prices and the commissioning of new farms in France, as well as an increased contribution from our joint ventures, enabled us to increase EBITDA(A) and discretionary cash flows this quarter. The vast majority of our indicators for the first six months of fiscal 2024 are positive, with net earnings up more than 41%. We are pursuing our efforts to maintain strict financial discipline, as evidenced by our strong balance sheet and over $620 million in available cash resources and authorized financing. Furthermore, the introduction of the 30% Clean Technology Investment Tax Credit (CT ITC) in Canada puts us in a good position to pursue our growth objectives. The tax credit will accelerate overall development of large-scale renewable energy projects in Canada and ensure that our industry is well positioned on the world stage when it comes to development of renewable energy,” Mr. Decostre added.

Boralex is constantly assessing initiatives aimed at optimizing its capital structure. Most recently, it raised additional funds for its various growth projects using bills of exchange for a total amount of $83 million as at June 30, 2024. The Corporation is also in discussions with financial institutions to pre-finance the 30% Clean Technology Investment Tax Credit introduced by the Canadian government in June 2024. In the second quarter, Boralex recognized an amount of $21 million in accounts receivable, representing nearly one-third of the credit receivable for the Apuiat construction project in Quebec.

Finally, Boralex also continued to make progress in terms of corporate social responsibility during the quarter, moving up from 21st to 15th place in Corporate Knights’ Best 50 list of Canada’s top corporate citizens. It also improved its ESG corporate rating, as calculated by the Institutional Shareholder Services group of companies (ISS ESG), from B- to B+, in addition to being awarded Prime status.

2nd quarter highlights

Three-monthperiodsendedJune30

During the second quarter of 2024, Boralex produced 1,323 GWh (1,882 GWh) of electricity, 2% less (1% more) than the 1,353 GWh (1,861 GWh) produced in the same quarter of 2023. The decrease was mainly attributable to weather conditions and more extensive power curtailments in France. As a result, Boralex ended the quarter with a total production that was 11% (8%) below anticipated production.3

Revenues from energy sales and feed-in premiums for the three-month period ended June 30, 2024 amounted to $180 million ($209 million), 14% (12% on a combined basis) lower than in the second quarter of 2023. The decrease was mainly attributable to the reduced production and lower selling prices in France. EBITDA(A)1 amounted to $130 million ($152 million), up 9% (7%) compared to the second quarter of 2023. The decline in production was offset by the positive impact from the strategy to optimize electricity selling prices and the contribution of commissioning in France, as well as an increase in the contribution from joint ventures in North America. Net earnings amounted to $17 million, down $2 million from $19 million for the same quarter of 2023. Operating income totalled $35 million ($58 million), compared to $38 million ($57 million) for the same quarter of 2023.

Six-monthperiodsendedJune30

In the six-month period ended June 30, 2024, Boralex produced 3,090 GWh (4,237 GWh) of power, slightly more than the 3,050 GWh (4,147 GWh) produced in the same period in 2023. Revenues from energy sales and feed-in premiums for the six- month period ended June 30, 2024, amounted to $439 million ($500 million), down $69 million ($65 million) or 14% (12%) from the same period in 2023.

EBITDA(A)1 amounted to $325 million ($370 million), up $39 million ($37 million) or 14% (11%) from the same period last year. Operating income totalled $141 million ($192 million), up $26 million ($33 million) from the same period in 2023. Overall, for the six-month period ended June 30, 2024, Boralex posted net earnings of $90 million ($90 million) compared to net earnings of $64 million ($64 million) for the same period in 2023.

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 Corporation’s annual report. Highlights of the main achievements for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, in relation to the 2025 Strategic Plan can be found in the 2024 Interim Report 2, 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 fuel its organic growth, the Corporation has a pipeline of projects at various stages of development defined on the basis of clearly identified criteria, totaling 6.8 GW of wind, solar and energy storage projects.

Dividend declaration

The Corporation’s Board of Directors has authorized and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.1650 per common share. This dividend will be paid on September 17, 2024, to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 30, 2024. 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 3.1 GW. We are developing a portfolio of projects in development and construction of more than 6.8 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.sedarplus.ca. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Non-IFRS measures
Performancemeasures

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 and integration costs, other loss (gains), net loss (gain) on financial instruments and foreign exchange loss (gain), with the last two items included under Other.

EBITDA(A) is used 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:

Cashflowfromoperationsanddiscretionarycash flows

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

Availablecashandcashequivalentsandavailablecashresourcesand 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 Corporation'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 Corporation’s financial targets, the projects commissioning dates, the portfolio of renewable energy projects, the Corporation’s Growth Path, the bids for new storage and solar projects 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 Corporation’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. While the Corporation considers these factors and assumptions to be reasonable, based on the information currently available to the Corporation, 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 Corporation’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 risk of not renewing PPAs or being unable to sign new corporate PPA, the risk of not being able to capture the US or Canadian investment tax credit, counterparty risk, the Corporation’s financing capacity, cybersecurity risks, 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 certain other factors considered in the sections dealing with risk factors and uncertainties appearing in Boralex's MD&A for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.

Unless otherwise specified by the Corporation, 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 Corporation’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.