Summary: East Kentucky Power Cooperative; Rural Electric Coop

S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'A' issuer credit rating on East Kentucky Power Cooperative Inc. (EKPC). The outlook is stable. EKPC is a generation and transmission (G&T) cooperative. Its 16 member distribution cooperatives serve more than 541,000 retail customers in 87 of Kentucky's 120 counties. In 2018, the cooperative produced 9,101 gigawatt hours (GWh), up from 7,564 GWh in the prior year. Self-production represented 64% of the 14,113 GWh it sold, down from 80% in 2013-2014 and even higher levels in earlier years. The declines principally reflect the utility's increasing use of market purchases from resources with lower variable costs than its predominantly coal-fired generation assets. EKPC reported $900 million of fiscal 2018 operating revenues and almost $3 billion of

...S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'A' issuer credit rating on East Kentucky Power Cooperative Inc. (EKPC). The outlook is stable. EKPC is a generation and transmission (G&T) cooperative. Its 16 member distribution cooperatives serve more than 541,000 retail customers in 87 of Kentucky's 120 counties. In 2018, the cooperative produced 9,101 gigawatt hours (GWh), up from 7,564 GWh in the prior year. Self-production represented 64% of the 14,113 GWh it sold, down from 80% in 2013-2014 and even higher levels in earlier years. The declines principally reflect the utility's increasing use of market purchases from resources with lower variable costs than its predominantly coal-fired generation assets. EKPC reported $900 million of fiscal 2018 operating revenues and almost $3 billion of debt at fiscal year-end (Dec. 31). In 2018, it was among the 10 largest G&T cooperatives in the U.S. as measured by member energy sales. The rating reflects what we consider the following credit strengths: + The utility's...

Summary