Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) CEO Bob Frenzel revealed Thursday that there is little space between him and his predecessor when it comes to the clean energy transition.
Speaking with financial analysts during the company’s third-quarter earnings conference call, Frenzel noted Xcel’s leadership position in clean energy under Ben Fowke, who retired earlier this year, and promised more to come.
“We expect, over the next decade, to close the majority of the coal plants on our systems across the country. We’ll be out of coal in the Upper Midwest by the end of this decade,” he said. “We have plans and approved plans to close a coal plant almost every single year this decade.”
Asked how Xcel’s plan to be carbon-free by 2050 could be accelerated, Frenzel said the Democrats’ proposed budget reconciliation bill includes production tax credits for renewable energy that offer a 10-year window to manage the transition.
The company’s integrated resource plan recently filed with Minnesota regulators envisions a full exit from coal by 2030, balanced by the addition of 3.2 GW of universal-scale solar and 2.7 GW of wind. Xcel has targeted an 85% carbon-reduction in Colorado, its other major market, by 2030 with a similar plan.
“Come 2024, we’d have another bite at the apple to think about the remaining assets on our fleet in those transitions,” Frenzel said. “I think what we need is another type of emissions-free generation.”
He said legislation pending on Capitol Hill would expand the U.S. Department of Energy’s funding for research and development. “I think that’s critical for the industry to progress past where we expect to be,” Frenzel said.
Xcel reported earnings of $609 million ($1.13/share) for the quarter, compared to $603 million ($1.14/share) for the same period in 2020.
The results missed analysts’ average expectations of $1.18/share. Xcel said higher electric and natural gas margins and lower operations and maintenance expenses offset additional depreciation and lower allowance for funds used during construction.
The Minneapolis-based company narrowing its 2021 earnings guidance to $2.94 to $2.98/share and issued 2022 guidance of $3.10 to $3.20/share.
Xcel’s share price gained 94 cents Thursday, closing at $64.33.
AEP Earnings up over 2020
American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) also released its third-quarter results Thursday, reporting earnings of $796 million ($1.59/share), above last year’s third quarter of $748.6 million ($1.51/share).
AEP CEO Nick Akins highlighted the energizing of the 287-MW Maverick Wind Energy Center, the second of three proposed North Central Energy Facilities. The three wind farms will eventually provide 1,485 MW of clean energy. (See AEP a Go with $2B North Central Wind Project.)
The company also announced Tuesday it has entered into an agreement to sell its Kentucky operations to Algonquin Power & Utilities for $2.85 billion. (See AEP to Sell Kentucky Operations to Algonquin.)
“Transforming the way energy is generated, delivered and consumed is necessary to support the needs of a clean energy economy, and AEP continues to drive that transformation for the benefit of our customers and communities,” Akins said.
The company’s share price was trading at $84.77 in after hours Thursday, a gain of 47 cents on the day.
