Entergy (NYSE:ETR) took a $340 million hit to its earnings during the second quarter when it closed its sale of the Indian Point Energy Center to nuclear contractor Holtec International, the company told financial analysts Wednesday.
The impairment, $268 million when adjusted for tax effects, resulted in a second-quarter loss of $6 million (‑$0.03/share), as compared to a year ago when earnings came in at $361 million ($1.79/share). The New Orleans-based company missed the Zacks Investment Research consensus estimate of $1.41/share in adjusted earnings, coming 7 cents short.
The company said in its earnings release that the nuclear decommissioning trust funds’ performance was below expectations and revenues lower because of the Indian Point 2 and 3 shutdowns. Entergy has been working on an exit from its merchant Entergy Wholesale Commodities business for several years now. (See Entergy Celebrates Sale of Final EWC Nuke.)
CEO Leo Denault said the company’s recently announced plan to build the hydrogen-enabled Orange County Advanced Power Station in Southeast Texas was a “significant milestone in our strategy to provide clean energy that also supports reliability.”
The 1,215-MW combined cycle power facility plays into the state government’s desire to reward dual-fuel or dispatchable plants when the ERCOT market is redesigned in the next few years. Entergy expects the plant to be online by the summer of 2026; the regulatory process begins in the third quarter.
Noting hydrogen burns cleaner than gas, Denault said, “That optionality [of hydrogen and gas] provides environmental benefits, but also resiliency, and that’s something we see as we deal with weather events.”
The company said it has filed regulatory applications to recover about $550 million for storm-restoration costs in Louisiana (U-35991) and Texas (51997). About $55 million of that is for costs stemming from the Midwestern storm in February; the company has already filed a securitization request in Texas for debt incurred during the event.
Entergy’s share price closed at $103.71 following the market’s close, down 29 cents from the previous close, but up $1.02 from the day’s opening price.
