SCANA earnings soar for first quarter

Crediting the sale of a couple of its businesses last year and a state-sanctioned electric rate hike, SCANA Corp. on Thursday said its earnings more than doubled the first quarter of 2015 compared with the same period last year.

Earnings soared to $400 million, up from $193 million during the first quarter of 2014, the utility reported.

The increased earnings occurred despite much milder weather during the first three months of 2015 that saw neither an epic ice storm like last year nor heavy snow.

Investors holding SCANA stock saw earnings of $2.80 a share in the first quarter of 2015, up from $1.37 a share in the first quarter of 2014. SCE&G, the principal subsidiary of SCANA, reported first-quarter earnings of $126 million, or per-share earnings of 89 cents for the first quarter, the company said.

“The first quarter was very unique,” said Jimmy Addison, SCANA executive vice president and chief financial officer. “We saw the successful closing of the sales of two subsidiaries, Carolina Gas Transmissions and SCANA Communications, and while the weather was not as extreme as we experienced in the first quarter of 2014, it was still colder than normal.

“In addition, we continue to experience improving economic conditions in our service territories and resulting customer growth,” Addison said.

SCE&G’s electricity margins were higher primarily because of the Base Load Review Act, which allows the utility to offset the financing of new construction costs at its nuclear generating plant in Fairfield County and pass along costs to new customers. A decrease in operations and maintenance expenses also positively contributed to SCE&G’s earnings when compared to last year, the company said in a statement.