SaskEnergy suggests the 2020-2021 fiscal year was one of reliability and affordability for its customers.
The Crown corporation released its annual report on Wednesday which showcased strong financial and operational results, including its lowest commodity rate in over 20 years.
Net income was recorded at $59 million and declared a dividend of $21 million to the Crown Investments Corporation. That was down seven million from the year before.
Don Morgan, minister responsible for SaskEnergy, said another highlight from 2020-2021 was their focus on buying local with $319 million spent in the province.
“This investment accounts for 70 per cent of SaskEnergy’s total purchases,” mentioned Morgan. “As the whole province works together post-pandemic, SaskEnergy and its employees continue to support and serve customers across the province with safe, affordable and reliable natural gas service.”
SaskEnergy also recorded its lowest rate of recordable injuries in the corporation’s history at 1.43 per 100 employees, down from the previous record of 1.63 injuries per 100 employees in 2016-2017.
In 2020-2021, the Crown corporation added over 3,000 more customers to its load, but it reached a new peak transmission day of 1.59 petajoules on Feb. 12, 2021.
Ken From, president and CEO of SaskEnergy, said they expect their forecast for consumption in the coming year will be fairly steady.
“The heating load depends on what happens during a particular winter, but our forecast, which we have been doing for 40 years, is where we add a little bit each year as our customer numbers grow,” stated From.
SaskEnergy’s customer base is now up to 400,000 – its highest ever.
SaskPower also released its yearly report Wednesday and like SaskEnergy there was a drop in income from the year before. SaskPower had net income of $160 million down from $205 million the year before.
While a key financial target for return on capital invested or retained was not met, Minister responsible Don Morgan says he is not concerned.
“We are living in increasingly challenging times with regard to the impact of the carbon tax and the need tomove forward on our emissions reductions. We also know existing infrastructure is aging so a major committment has been made in upgrading the transmission system.” Morgan said.
