NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch Ratings has affirmed the 'AA+' implied rating assigned to Omaha Metropolitan Utilities District (OMUD), Nebraska. Fitch's rating is assigned to OMUD's Gas Department (the department) only and is implied, since none of its debt is publicly held and reflects the department's ability to meet payments for natural gas supplied by the Central Plains Energy Project (CPEP). OMUD contracts approximately 40% of its gas supply through three long-term contracts with expiration dates of Oct. 31, 2023, June 30, 2039 and July 31, 2042 respectively. The balance is purchased from other suppliers.
The Rating Outlook is Stable.
KEY RATING DRIVERS
GAS DEPARTMENT OPERATIONS: The natural gas division is a separate self-supporting enterprise fund of the Omaha Metropolitan Utilities District (the district) which was created by the state to provide natural gas service to the Omaha metropolitan area.
SOLE RATE-SETTING AUTHORITY: The district has authority over rate-setting, and has historically recovered costs on a timely basis.
MINIMAL LONG-TERM DEBT OUTSTANDING: The gas department does not have any publicly held debt and finances its capital plan almost entirely from internally generated cash. Debt outstanding is limited to a $1.8 million loan with the Nebraska Energy Office.
STRONG SERVICE AREA: The district's service territory is very stable with lower unemployment and higher wealth levels compared with the U.S. national averages. The customer base is primarily residential and commercial accounts served are diverse.
COMPETITIVE RATE STRUCTURE: The district is the area's exclusive service provider, with consistently lower rates than neighboring Black Hills Energy (BHE), and other utilities around the country. The district's 10-year average rate increase was a modest 1.7%.
IMPROVED LIQUIDITY POSITION: The district's cash position improved in 2012 from a historical average of 14 days. This is further supported by access to internal and external short-term borrowing arrangements, and a willingness to recover costs through rate increases.
KEY SENSITIVITIES
LIQUIDITY POSITION: Significant declines in liquidity and narrowing of operating margins, while not anticipated, would pressure the current rating level.
FINANCIAL FLEXIBILITY: OMUD's ability to maintain its current financial flexibility will continue to be a key rating factor and essential to meet gas payments, support gas storage requirements and fund ongoing capital expenditures.
CREDIT PROFILE
OMUD, created in 1913, is a public utility owned by the district that provides water and natural gas service to the Omaha metropolitan area. The water and natural gas divisions are separate self-supporting enterprise funds of the city. While there is short term cross subsidization between both departments, Fitch views management's strategy of increasing utility rates to achieve more independent and self-sustaining cash flow for both funds as a credit positive.
Gas Supply Requirements
The district relies on CPEP for approximately 40% of its gas supply requirements. The balance, mostly for seasonal deliveries, is purchased from a portfolio of suppliers in the U.S. and Canada that consist of short-term, staggered, seasonal one-month (April-October) and five-month contracts (November-March). Fitch views the short term nature of the remaining gas supply agreements as credit neutral because of the district's mechanism of monthly pass-through of gas costs.
Stable Financial Performance
Fitch notes the district's ability to generate sufficient revenues to cover the cost of natural gas purchased from CPEP, demonstrated by healthy operating margins that averaged 6% over the last five years.
Fiscal 2012 revenues from gas sales were down 19.4%, due to less gas volumes sold and lower gas costs. Fitch notes that despite the substantial drop, the cost of gas purchased also decreased helping support stability in operating margins. Operating expenses were 23.1% lower from 2011. Cost of gas is a major component of operating expenses, and in 2012 was 29.4% lower than in 2011 driving the lower cost base. Management budgets for a 0.5% growth rate in sales over the next five years which is certainly achievable given the stability of the service area and expected residential rate increases.
Improving Liquidity Position
Fiscal 2012 ended with $35 million in unrestricted cash. The increase in cash compared to a its five-year historical average of $9.8 million, was due to a combination of rate increases, repayment of funds owed by the water department, and payments made by CPEP to compensate for a reduction in gas deliveries. The district's available cash allows for 83 days of operation. This metric, however, is still below the median for the current rating category.
Additional borrowing capacity under its $30 million line of credit (LOC) increases liquidity to 155 days. Fitch sees the availability of the LOC as a credit positive because it provides short-term operational flexibility given the district's historical ability and willingness to recover commodity cost increases through a rate pass-through. However, should the line not be renewed in the future, Fitch would expect the district to increase its internal liquidity.
Management typically funds its capital plan through the collection of infrastructure taxes/fees and on a pay-as-you-go basis, not encumbering available liquidity and resulting in a more manageable program.
Stable Service Area Economics
The utility primarily serves the city of Omaha, the largest city in Nebraska, with an estimated population of 885,624 (2012) for the Omaha MSA. Omaha exhibits a strong and diverse economy, where local unemployment levels (4.1% as of May 2013) are low compared to the national average and per capita personal income exceeds (1.07x) the national average of $41,560. The gas utility's stable service area, combined with its competitive utility rates, provide it with considerable rate-making flexibility if needed.
OMUD is the fifth largest municipal gas utility in the country and serves a diverse customer base including four Fortune 500 companies, Mutual of Omaha, Kellogg, and the University of Nebraska at Omaha, all of which are headquartered in Omaha. OMUD's 10 largest customers account for 11% of metered gas sales revenues.
Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.
In addition to the sources of information identified in Fitch's Revenue-Supported Rating Criteria and U.S. Public Power Rating Criteria, this action was informed by information from CreditScope.
Applicable Criteria and Related Research:
--'Revenue-Supported Rating Criteria' (June 2013);
--'U.S. Public Power Rating Criteria' (December 2012).
Applicable Criteria and Related Research:
Revenue-Supported Rating Criteria
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=709499
U.S. Public Power Rating Criteria
http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=696027
Additional Disclosure
Solicitation Status
http://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=797626
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