Tucson" Unisource Reports $90MM Profit Increase

By Dale Quinn

ARIZONA DAILY STAR

UniSource Energy Corp., parent of Tucson Electric Power Co., reported a profit of $104 million for 2009 — up about $90 million from the previous year.

The company attributed the results to higher revenues, careful cost control and fewer one-time accounting items.

“While the weak economy continued to put downward pressure on our sales volumes throughout the year, we re­sponded by tightly control­ling our costs without com­promising safety or reliabili­ty,” UniSource Chairman and CEO Paul Bonavia said in pre­pared remarks. Bonavia said the effort trimmed 3 percent from the operating and maintenance costs the company had esti­mated for 2009. UniSource posted fourth­quarter net income of $10.4 million, or 28 cents per share, compared with a profit of $22.9 million and 60 cents in fourth­quarter 2008, when earnings at TEP benefited from regulatory accounting changes.

The company’s 2009 profit of $104.3 million equaled $2.69 per share, compared with a profit of $14 million, or 39 cents per share, for 2008.

UniSource also forecast its 2010 earnings at $2.75 to $3 per share.

UniSource Energy’s finan­cial results mainly reflect those of TEP, which posted a yearly profit of $89.2 million, compared with $4.4 million in 2008.

The company said the in­crease was due mainly to higher retail revenues, lower fuel and purchased-power expenses and accounting ad­justments in 2008 that did not recur in 2009.

TEP saw its sales volume dip 2.4 percent in 2009 on a weather-adjusted basis, but a significant rate increase in December 2008 helped boost retail electric revenues 5 per­cent, or nearly $40 million, the company said.

UniSource shares closed Wednesday at $31.50, up 13 cents, before the earnings re­lease.

TEPprovides power to about 400,000 customers in in the Tucson area. UniSource Energy Services, another subsidiary, provides electric and natural gas service to 236,000 customers in parts of Northern and Southern Ari­zona.

Contact reporter Dale Quinn at 573-4197 or dquinn@azstarnet.com