愛依斯電力 (AES) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome to the AES Corporation Q1 2024 Financial Review Call. My name is Jordan, and I'll be coordinating your call today. (Operator Instructions)

您好，歡迎參加 AES Corporation 2024 年第一季財務回顧電話會議。我叫喬丹，今天我將協調您的電話。 （操作員說明）

I'm now going to hand over to Susan Harcourt, Vice President of Investor Relations. Susan, please go ahead.

現在我將把工作交給投資者關係副總裁蘇珊哈考特 (Susan Harcourt)。蘇珊，請繼續。

Thank you, operator. Good morning, and welcome to our first quarter 2024 financial review call. Our press release, presentation and related financial information are available on our website at aes.com.

謝謝你，接線生。早上好，歡迎參加我們的 2024 年第一季財務回顧電話會議。我們的新聞稿、簡報和相關財務資訊可在我們的網站 aes.com 上取得。

Today, we will be making forward-looking statements. There are many factors that may cause future results to differ materially from these statements, which are disclosed in our most recent 10-K and 10-Q filed with the SEC. Reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP financial measures can be found on our website along with the presentation.

今天，我們將做出前瞻性陳述。有許多因素可能導致未來結果與我們最近向 SEC 提交的 10-K 和 10-Q 中披露的這些聲明產生重大差異。您可以在我們的網站上找到 GAAP 和非 GAAP 財務指標之間的調整表以及簡報。

Joining me this morning are Andres Gluski, our President and Chief Executive Officer; Steve Coughlin, our Chief Financial Officer; and other senior members of our management team. With that, I will turn the call over to Andres.

今天早上和我一起來的是我們的總裁兼執行長安德烈斯·格魯斯基 (Andres Gluski)； Steve Coughlin，我們的財務長；以及我們管理團隊的其他高階成員。這樣，我會將電話轉給安德烈斯。

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining our first quarter 2024 financial review call. We are very pleased with our progress so far this year. And today, I will discuss our first quarter results and provide key business updates. Steve Coughlin, our CFO, will give more detail on our financial performance and outlook.

大家早安，感謝您參加我們的 2024 年第一季財務審查電話會議。我們對今年迄今的進展感到非常滿意。今天，我將討論我們第一季的業績並提供關鍵業務更新。我們的財務長 Steve Coughlin 將提供有關我們財務業績和前景的更多詳細資訊。

Beginning on Slide 3 with our first quarter results. We had a strong first quarter that was in line with our expectations, with adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes of $863 million, adjusted EBITDA of $635 million and adjusted EPS of $0.50. These results demonstrate once again our ability to execute on our plans and guidance and our structural resilience to high interest rates and inflation.

從投影片 3 開始我們第一季的業績。我們第一季的表現強勁，符合我們的預期，調整後的 EBITDA（含稅收屬性）為 8.63 億美元，調整後的 EBITDA 為 6.35 億美元，調整後的每股收益為 0.50 美元。這些結果再次證明了我們執行計劃和指導的能力以及我們對高利率和通貨膨脹的結構彈性。

I am pleased to reaffirm our 2024 guidance for all metrics and growth rates through 2027. Today, I will be discussing the success we have achieved with technology companies and data centers as well as the significant market opportunity that we see for renewable growth for the foreseeable future.

我很高興重申我們對2024 年所有指標和成長率的指導，直至2027 年。重大市場機會未來。

Turning to Slide 4. I'm happy to announce that this quarter, we signed a 15-year contract with Amazon with the second phase of our Bellefield project, with an additional 500 megawatts of solar and 500 megawatts of storage. The entire project, including Bellefield 1, which we contracted last year, will provide 2 gigawatts of combined solar and storage for Amazon, making it the biggest solar-plus-storage project in the U.S.

轉向幻燈片 4。整個項目，包括我們去年簽約的 Bellefield 1 號項目，將為亞馬遜提供 2 吉瓦的太陽能和儲能組合，使其成為美國最大的太陽能+儲能項目。

We see the 2 gigawatt Bellefield solar-plus-storage project is a milestone for AES and a demonstration of the important role that renewables play in delivering new energy. The significant energy storage component, which includes AES' proprietary AI weather forecasting, ensures the project is able to supply carbon-free energy throughout the day.

我們認為 2 吉瓦 Bellefield 太陽能+儲能專案是 AES 的一個里程碑，也展示了再生能源在提供新能源方面所扮演的重要角色。重要的儲能組件包括 AES 專有的人工智慧天氣預報，確保該專案能夠全天供應無碳能源。

Turning to Slide 5. With this project, we now have nearly 6 gigawatts of long-term contracts directly with technology companies, making AES among the largest energy providers to data centers. This does not include more than 500 megawatts of contracts signed with utilities to serve data center customers. We are fully supporting the commitments that Google, Microsoft, Amazon and others have made to procure not just carbon-free energy, but specifically additional renewals.

轉向幻燈片 5。這不包括與公用事業公司簽訂的超過 500 兆瓦的合同，為資料中心客戶提供服務。我們完全支持谷歌、微軟、亞馬遜和其他公司所做的承諾，不僅採購無碳能源，而且特別是額外的更新。

Turning to Slide 6. Across the U.S., power demand is forecasted to increase significantly over the next decade, driven by factors such as data center growth, onshoring of manufacturing and electrification of mobility. There is no technology better suited to serve this load growth than wind and solar, particularly when combined with energy storage.

轉向幻燈片 6。沒有比風能和太陽能更適合滿足這種負載成長的技術了，特別是與儲能結合時。

Turning to Slide 7. Even using data that is more than a year old, renewables clearly offer the lowest levelized cost of energy, or LCOE, of any new build on an unsubsidized basis. They provide a source of predictable energy that is not impacted by fuel availability or price volatility. Furthermore, renewables are substantially better placed than any other form of power to actually come online over the next decade when power shortages are likely to be most acute.

轉向投影片 7。它們提供了不受燃料供應或價格波動影響的可預測能源來源。此外，在未來十年電力短缺可能最嚴重的情況下，再生能源比任何其他形式的電力更容易實際投入使用。

Nowhere is this clearer than in the interconnection queue, which, is as you can see on Slide 8, are dominated by renewable projects. Looking at 2024 as an example, 95% of the capacity additions in the U.S. are expected to come from solar, energy storage and wind. A major part of this growth is coming from energy storage, whose installed capacity is expected to double by the end of the year.

這一點在互連隊列中最為明顯，正如您在投影片 8 中看到的那樣，互連隊列主要由再生能源專案主導。以2024年為例，預計美國95%的新增產能將來自太陽能、儲能和風能。這一增長的主要部分來自儲能，其裝置容量預計到今年年底將翻倍。

Given our role in creating and first commercializing grid-scale lithium-ion-based energy storage, it fills me with great satisfaction to see that the 2 largest economies in the country, California and Texas, now get more than 10% of their dispatchable capacity from batteries. We are now even seeing periods of the day in California when energy storage is the single largest source of power on the grid.

鑑於我們在創建並首次商業化電網規模鋰離子儲能方面所發揮的作用，看到美國最大的兩個經濟體加州和德克薩斯州現在獲得了超過10% 的可調度容量，我感到非常滿意來自電池。我們現在甚至看到在加州一天中的某個時段，儲能是電網中最大的單一電力來源。

Turning to Slide 9. Among renewable developers, AES is best positioned to address corporate load growth. We have the scale and experience to bring projects to market in the most cost-efficient way. Our flexibility and ability to innovate give us a competitive advantage with our large customers, just as it led to our early partnerships with data center companies. We also had the best track record in the market of supply chain management and bringing projects online, on time and on budget.

轉向投影片 9。我們擁有規模和經驗，能夠以最具成本效益的方式將專案推向市場。我們的靈活性和創新能力使我們在大客戶中具有競爭優勢，正如它促成了我們與資料中心公司的早期合作夥伴關係一樣。我們在供應鏈管理市場以及按時、按預算上線專案方面也擁有最佳記錄。

As you can see on Slide 10, we have a pipeline of 66 gigawatts, not including prospects, with projects ranging in maturity from early stage to late stage. Let me emphasize that all of the projects in our pipeline include some degree of land control as well as interconnection filing.

正如您在幻燈片 10 中看到的，我們有 66 吉瓦的管道，不包括前景，專案的成熟度從早期階段到後期階段不等。我要強調的是，我們正在籌備的所有項目都包括一定程度的土地控制和互連備案。

In addition, rather than pursuing just total megawatts, we have taken a strategic approach to building our pipeline, focusing on those markets and sites where we see the most significant demand and where we are best positioned to add value. The breadth and maturity of this pipeline, both in terms of market and interconnection queue positions, provide us with a meaningful competitive advantage and line of sight into future growth.

此外，我們不只是追求總兆瓦數，而是採取了策略方法來建立我們的管道，並專注於那些我們認為需求最大且最有能力增加價值的市場和地點。此管道的廣度和成熟度，無論是在市場還是互連隊列位置方面，都為我們提供了有意義的競爭優勢和未來成長的視野。

As I mentioned in February, our historical results, combined with accelerating demand for our renewable projects, led us to increase our U.S. project return expectations by 200 basis points to 12% to 15% on a levered after-tax cash basis and raised our long-term guidance for both EBITDA and EPS. With 1.2 gigawatts of new contract signings since our Q4 call in February, including Bellefield 2, we now have a backlog of signed contracts of 12.7 gigawatts.

正如我在2 月提到的，我們的歷史業績，加上對再生能源專案需求的加速成長，導致我們將美國專案回報預期提高了200 個基點，在槓桿稅後現金基礎上達到12% 至15%，並提高了我們的長期投資回報率。自 2 月第四季電話會議以來，我們簽署了 1.2 吉瓦的新合約（包括 Bellefield 2），目前已簽署的合約積壓量為 12.7 吉瓦。

We have also added almost 600 megawatts of new projects to our operating portfolio, including the completion of Chevelon Butte, which is the largest wind project in the state of Arizona, and Delta, which is the first utility-scale wind project in the state of Mississippi. With these additions to our operating fleet and the good progress we are making on our projects currently under construction, we remain fully on track to add a total of 3.6 gigawatts of new capacity this year.

我們還在營運組合中增加了近 600 兆瓦的新項目，包括完成亞利桑那州最大的風電項目 Chevelon Butte 和亞利桑那州第一個公用事業規模風電項目 Delta。隨著我們營運船隊的這些新增以及我們目前在建項目取得的良好進展，我們仍然完全有望在今年增加總計 3.6 吉瓦的新產能。

I should note that for the remaining projects coming online in 2024, we had 92% of the major equipment already on site, including virtually all of our solar modules and more than half of our solar modules for 2025. Our diversified and resilient supply chain has been, and will continue to be, one of our differentiators.

我應該指出的是，對於 2024 年上線的剩餘項目，我們 92% 的主要設備已在現場，包括幾乎所有太陽能組件和 2025 年一半以上的太陽能組件。將繼續是我們的差異化因素之一。

Turning to our utilities on Slide 11. In mid-April, AES Indiana achieved a critical milestone with the approval of its rate case by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. Resolving the rate case provides us a constructive regulatory foundation for our investments focused on reliability, resiliency and customer experience and allows us to partially recover accumulated inflation since our last rate case in 2017.

轉向幻燈片 11 上的公用事業。解決利率案例為我們專注於可靠性、彈性和客戶體驗的投資提供了建設性的監管基礎，並使我們能夠部分恢復自 2017 年上次利率案例以來累積的通膨。

The $71 million rate case increase includes an ROE of 9.9%, demonstrating the commission's support for investments that strengthen the overall system reliability and drive value for customers. In late February, we also closed on the acquisition of the 106-megawatt Hoosier Wind project, providing long-term savings to our customers while also adding to AS Indiana's portfolio of renewable projects.

7,100 萬美元的費率上漲包括 9.9% 的 ROE，這表明委員會對加強整體系統可靠性和為客戶創造價值的投資的支持。 2 月下旬，我們也完成了 106 兆瓦 Hoosier Wind 專案的收購，為我們的客戶提供長期節省，同時也增加了印第安納州的再生能源專案組合。

AES Indiana's latest Integrated Resource Plan, or IRP, includes a commitment for the addition of 1,300 megawatts of wind, solar and energy storage over the next 5 years. At AES Ohio, we continue to execute on our growth plan, stemming from our new rate case structure, ESP 4, put in place in Q3 of last year as well as our Smart Grid program and FERC formula investment in transmission.

AES Indiana 最新的綜合資源計畫 (IRP) 包括承諾在未來 5 年內增加 1,300 兆瓦的風能、太陽能和儲能設施。在 AES Ohio，我們繼續執行我們的成長計劃，該計劃源於去年第三季度實施的新費率案例結構 ESP 4 以及我們的智慧電網計劃和 FERC 輸電公式投資。

By the end of the program, AES Ohio will still maintain the lowest rates in the state across all customer classes. As a reminder, approximately 80% of AES Ohio's planned investments through 2027 are already approved or under FERC formula rate programs.

到該計劃結束時，AES 俄亥俄州仍將保持該州所有客戶類別的最低費率。需要提醒的是，到 2027 年，AES 俄亥俄州計劃投資的大約 80% 已獲得批准或處於 FERC 公式利率計劃之下。

Across our 2 utilities, our Q1 investment was up nearly 100% from last year as a result of the new rate structures and investing to improve system resilience and customer experience. Looking ahead, we now have a clear line of sight to $4 billion of our total utility capital program of $5.3 billion through 2027.

在我們的兩家公用事業公司中，由於新的費率結構以及為提高系統彈性和客戶體驗而進行的投資，我們第一季的投資比去年增長了近 100%。展望未來，我們現在的目標是到 2027 年，公用事業資本計畫總額為 53 億美元，其中 40 億美元。

We are also seeing the potential for further upside from the growing interest from data center providers who see our service territory as a desirable location for growth. With double-digit rate base growth throughout our planned horizon, we believe they represent one of the fastest-growing utility investment opportunities in the country.

我們也看到資料中心提供者日益增長的興趣帶來的進一步上漲的潛力，他們將我們的服務領域視為理想的成長地點。在我們的計劃範圍內，隨著兩位數的利率基礎增長，我們相信它們代表了該國增長最快的公用事業投資機會之一。

With that, I now would like to turn the call over to our CFO, Steve Coughlin.

現在，我想將電話轉給我們的財務長 Steve Coughlin。

Thank you, Andres, and good morning, everyone. Today, I will discuss our first quarter results and our 2024 guidance and parent capital allocation. Following that, I will provide a deeper dive into our low-risk, highly efficient capital structure, which is important for everyone to understand.

謝謝你，安德烈斯，大家早安。今天，我將討論我們的第一季業績以及 2024 年指導和母公司資本配置。接下來，我將更深入地探討我們的低風險、有效率的資本結構，這對每個人來說都很重要。

Turning to Slide 13. Adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes was $863 million in the first quarter versus $641 million a year ago. This was driven primarily by contributions from the roughly 600 megawatts of new renewables we brought online.

轉向投影片 13。這主要是由我們上網的約 600 兆瓦的新再生能源的貢獻所推動的。

Turning to Slide 14. Adjusted EPS for the quarter was $0.50 versus $0.22 last year and in line with our expectations. Drivers were similar to those of adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes but also included higher parent interest expense and a lower adjusted tax rate. These results include approximately $0.08 of tax benefits, consistent with our expectations, which were associated with steps we took this quarter to transition to a more U.S.-oriented holding company structure that is better aligned with our significant U.S. growth.

轉向幻燈片 14。驅動因素與具有稅務屬性的調整後 EBITDA 類似，但也包括較高的母公司利息支出和較低的調整後稅率。這些結果包括約 0.08 美元的稅收優惠，與我們的預期一致，這與我們本季度採取的向美國導向的控股公司結構轉型的步驟有關，該結構更符合我們在美國的顯著增長。

In the future, we may recognize further benefits from our revised simpler structure, although likely of a smaller magnitude. We continue to expect an adjusted tax rate of 23% to 25% for the full year, excluding the impact of tax credit transfers, which we are showing at the SBU level for simplicity. I'll cover the performance of our SBUs or strategic business units on the next 4 slides.

將來，我們可能會從我們修改後的更簡單的結構中認識到更多的好處，儘管幅度可能較小。我們仍然預計全年調整後的稅率為 23% 至 25%，不包括稅收抵免轉移的影響，為簡單起見，我們在 SBU 層面上顯示了稅收抵免轉移的影響。我將在接下來的 4 張投影片中介紹我們的 SBU 或策略業務部門的績效。

Beginning with our renewables SBU on Slide 15, higher EBITDA with tax attributes was driven primarily by contributions from new businesses but was partially offset by lower renewable resource in Panama and Brazil. Higher adjusted PTC at our Utilities SBU was mostly driven by favorable weather in the U.S. as well as higher revenues from investments in our rate base. This was partially offset by interest expense on new borrowings to fund future growth.

從幻燈片 15 上的可再生能源 SBU 開始，具有稅收屬性的 EBITDA 較高，主要是由新業務的貢獻推動的，但部分被巴拿馬和巴西可再生資源的減少所抵消。我們的公用事業 SBU 調整後的 PTC 較高，主要是由於美國的有利天氣以及我們的費率基礎投資帶來的收入增加。這被為未來成長提供資金的新借款的利息支出部分抵消。

Relatively flat EBITDA at our energy infrastructure SBU primarily reflects prior year higher LNG transaction margins and the sell-down of our gas and LNG businesses in Panama and the Dominican Republic. This was partially offset by higher revenues recognized from the accelerated monetization of the PPA at our Warrior Run plant. Finally, higher EBITDA at our New Energy Technologies SBU reflects continued margin improvement at Fluence.

我們的能源基礎設施 SBU 的 EBITDA 相對持平，主要反映了去年較高的液化天然氣交易利潤以及我們在巴拿馬和多明尼加共和國的天然氣和液化天然氣業務的出售。這被我們 Warrior Run 工廠購電協議加速貨幣化帶來的收入增加所部分抵銷。最後，新能源技術 SBU 較高的 EBITDA 反映了 Fluence 利潤率的持續改善。

Now turning to our guidance on Slide 19. We are reaffirming our 2024 adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes guidance of $3.6 billion to $4 billion and 2024 adjusted EBITDA guidance of $2.6 billion to $2.9 billion. We expect to continue to see strong growth in our renewables and utilities businesses, partially offset by short-term dilution from continued execution on our $3.5 billion asset sale target through 2027.

現在轉向幻燈片 19 上的指引。我們預計再生能源和公用事業業務將繼續強勁成長，但到 2027 年繼續執行 35 億美元資產出售目標所帶來的短期稀釋會部分抵銷這一成長。

We are also reaffirming our 2024 adjusted EPS guidance of $1.87 to $1.97. Our earnings will have similar drivers to adjusted EBITDA with tax attributes but will also be impacted by a lower adjusted tax rate and higher parent interest. We anticipate a more even distribution of cash and earnings throughout the year, with nearly half of earnings expected to come in the first half versus only 25% in 2023.

我們也重申 2024 年調整後每股盈餘指引為 1.87 美元至 1.97 美元。我們的收益將與具有稅收屬性的調整後 EBITDA 具有類似的驅動因素，但也會受到較低調整稅率和較高母公司利息的影響。我們預計全年現金和收益的分配將更加均勻，預計近一半的收益將在上半年實現，而 2023 年這一比例僅為 25%。

Now to our 2024 parent capital allocation plan on Slide 20. Sources reflect approximately $3 billion of total discretionary cash, including $1.1 billion of parent free cash flow, $900 million to $1.1 billion of proceeds from asset sales and $900 million to $1 billion of planned parent debt issuance.

現在來看看投影片20 上的2024 年母公司資本分配計畫。收益以及9 億至10 億美元的母公司計劃收益債務發行。

As a reminder, we limit any parent debt issuance to a level consistent with our investment-grade credit metrics. We continue to be very pleased with the great progress toward our $3.5 billion asset sale program, which will limit and may eliminate any need for future parent equity issuance throughout our long-term guidance period.

提醒一下，我們將任何母公司債務發行限制在與我們的投資等級信用指標一致的水平。我們仍然對 35 億美元資產出售計劃的巨大進展感到非常高興，該計劃將限制並可能消除我們整個長期指導期內未來母公司股權發行的任何需求。

On the right-hand side, you can see our planned use of capital. We will return approximately $500 million to shareholders this year, reflecting the previously announced 4% dividend increase. We also plan to invest approximately $2.6 billion towards new growth, of which 85% will go to renewables and utilities.

在右側，您可以看到我們計劃的資金使用情況。今年我們將向股東返還約 5 億美元，反映了先前宣布的 4% 的股息成長。我們還計劃投資約 26 億美元用於新的成長，其中 85% 將用於再生能源和公用事業。

One of our strengths is the flexibility we maintain in our capital plan across both sources and uses. As we have for many years, we will continue to execute on opportunities to rotate capital across the portfolio in a manner that creates shareholder value.

我們的優勢之一是我們在來源和用途方面保持資本計劃的靈活性。正如我們多年來所做的那樣，我們將繼續抓住機會，以創造股東價值的方式在整個投資組合中進行資本輪換。

Next, I want to take a moment to discuss how we manage our balance sheet on Slide 21. First, we utilize nonrecourse debt to fund our growth. Approximately 82% of the debt on our balance sheet is nonrecourse to AES Corp., meaning it is only secured at the relevant subsidiary level. This important structural component limits our risk at the parent company to the equity we invest in our subsidiaries.

接下來，我想花點時間討論投影片 21 上我們如何管理資產負債表。我們資產負債表上約 82% 的債務對 AES Corp. 是無追索權的，這意味著它僅在相關子公司層級得到擔保。這一重要的結構組成部分將我們在母公司的風險限制在我們投資於子公司的股權上。

We further insulate our financials from interest rate movements with nearly 90% of our long-term debt being fixed rate or hedged. In addition, nearly $4 billion of the debt on our balance sheet is under designated construction facilities, which are also nonrecourse to the parent company but are backed by projects that don't yet generate earnings or cash.

我們近 90% 的長期債務是固定利率或對沖的，進一步使我們的財務狀況免受利率波動的影響。此外，我們資產負債表上近 40 億美元的債務屬於指定建設設施，這些設施對母公司也無追索權，但得到尚未產生收益或現金的項目的支持。

When a project reaches commercial operations, approximately half of this construction debt will be repaid with cash generated from the monetization of tax attributes leading to a significantly lower long-term leverage profile on projects in operation. As a result, recourse debt to the AES parent is only 18% of total leverage.

當專案達到商業營運時，大約一半的建設債務將用稅收屬性貨幣化產生的現金償還，從而導致營運中專案的長期槓桿率顯著降低。因此，對 AES 母公司的追索債務僅佔總槓桿的 18%。

Using an example of a typical U.S. solar-plus-battery project on Slide 22. We've centered our strategy around a capital-efficient model, which quickly recycles cash, enabling the rapid growth we've achieved in recent years. First, when we place a project in service, we pay down at least 40% of a project's capital cost with tax equity partnerships and tax credit transfers.

使用幻燈片 22 上典型的美國太陽能+電池專案的範例。首先，當我們將專案投入使用時，我們透過稅收股權合作夥伴關係和稅收抵免轉移支付至少 40% 的專案資本成本。

Our projects typically benefit from the investment tax credit, which provides an attractive upfront cash return on our investment and significantly reduces net parent cash requirements. We fund an additional approximately 40% using fixed-rate, amortizing nonrecourse debt, which is investment-grade rated.

我們的專案通常受益於投資稅收抵免，這為我們的投資提供了有吸引力的前期現金回報，並顯著降低了母公司淨現金需求。我們使用固定利率、攤提無追索權債務為另外約 40% 的資金提供資金，該債務的評級為投資等級。

In order to insulate project returns from changes in interest rates, we pre-hedged this expected debt issuance when we sign a PPA. We currently have nearly $9 billion of outstanding interest rate hedges on our balance sheet, most of which relate to our U.S. renewables business.

為了使專案回報免受利率變化的影響，我們在簽署購電協議時預先對沖了預期的債務發行。目前，我們的資產負債表上有近 90 億美元的未償利率對沖，其中大部分與我們的美國再生能源業務有關。

With respect to equity requirements for U.S. renewables, our development partner, Alberta Investment Management, or AIMCo, contributes 25% of equity capital needs. Once a project is completed, we typically bundle it into an operating portfolio and sell down a large minority stake at an attractive premium and recover most, if not all, of the upfront parent equity investment in the project.

關於美國再生能源的股權要求，我們的開發合作夥伴阿爾伯塔投資管理公司 (AIMCo) 貢獻了 25% 的股權資本需求。一旦專案完成，我們通常會將其捆綁到一個營運投資組合中，並以有吸引力的溢價出售大量少數股權，並收回該專案的大部分（如果不是全部）前期母公司股權投資。

The end result is a material ownership in a high-quality, long-term renewables project with little net cash invested listed and de minimis risks to our balance sheet. This model allows us to grow rapidly while maintaining an investment-grade credit rating and ensures our financial results are not sensitive to changes in interest rates.

最終結果是對一個高品質、長期再生能源專案的實質所有權，上市投資淨現金很少，對我們的資產負債表的風險微乎其微。這種模式使我們能夠快速成長，同時保持投資等級信用評級，並確保我們的財務表現對利率變化不敏感。

Now turning back to our first quarter results. We've had a tremendous start to the year, making significant progress towards all of our financial targets. We expect to continue the momentum in the year to go as we complete our remaining 3 gigawatts of new projects and continue growing the rate base at our U.S. utilities while maintaining a low-risk, highly efficient capital structure and funding plan.

現在回到我們第一季的業績。今年我們取得了良好的開局，在實現所有財務目標方面取得了重大進展。我們預計今年將繼續保持這一勢頭，完成剩餘的 3 吉瓦新項目，並繼續擴大美國公用事業公司的費率基礎，同時保持低風險、高效的資本結構和融資計劃。

With that, I'll turn the call back over to Andres.

這樣，我會將電話轉回給安德烈斯。

Thank you, Steve. Before we open up the call for questions, I would like to sum up the highlights of the quarter. We had a strong first quarter, in line with our expectations. Our earnings and cash flow are now more evenly balanced throughout the year as our U.S. renewable business matures.

謝謝你，史蒂夫。在我們開始提問之前，我想總結一下本季的亮點。我們第一季表現強勁，符合我們的預期。隨著我們美國再生能源業務的成熟，我們的收入和現金流全年都更加平衡。

Our performance demonstrates yet again our ability to execute, and that our financial results are not sensitive to higher interest rates. Our financial model is proving very resilient as we see ample supply of nonrecourse project finance debt as well as strong demand for tax attributes and project equity from minority partners.

我們的業績再次證明了我們的執行能力，我們的財務表現對利率上升並不敏感。事實證明，我們的財務模式非常有彈性，因為我們看到無追索權專案融資債務供應充足，以及少數合作夥伴對稅收屬性和專案股權的強勁需求。

In addition, our asset sales program is on track, representing an important component of our capital-efficient growth model, which may even eliminate our need for issuing corporate equity through our long-term guidance period. Our stock would have to reach much higher valuation before new parent equity would even be considered several years in the future.

此外，我們的資產出售計畫正在步入正軌，是我們資本效率成長模式的重要組成部分，這甚至可能消除我們在長期指導期內發行企業股權的需要。在未來幾年考慮新的母公司股權之前，我們的股票必須達到更高的估值。

We see strong and accelerating demand for renewables in our core markets and are pleased to be in a leading position with the largest segment of growth data centers. We're also executing well on our construction program and have virtually all of the major equipment we need for 2024 on site and the majority of what we need for 2025 as well.

我們看到我們的核心市場對再生能源的需求強勁且不斷成長，並且很高興能夠在最大的成長資料中心領域處於領先地位。我們的施工計劃也執行得很好，現場幾乎擁有 2024 年所需的所有主要設備以及 2025 年所需的大部分設備。

Our supply chain management continues to support our best-in-class track record of delivering new renewable projects on time and on budget. In closing, we are once again delivering on our strategic objectives and financial guidance and are uniquely well placed to be one of the winners of the energy transition.

我們的供應鏈管理持續支持我們按時、按預算交付新的再生能源專案的一流記錄。最後，我們再次實現我們的策略目標和財務指導，並處於獨特的有利地位，成為能源轉型的贏家之一。

Operator, please open up the line for questions.

接線員，請開通提問線。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Nick Campanella of Barclays.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的尼克·坎帕內拉（Nick Campanella）。

So thanks for the comments on the asset sale programs. And I was just hoping you could maybe expand a little on your commentary about eliminating future planned equity issuance. Is that something that we should have kind of a view on through this year because you do have asset sales penciled into 2024? Or is that statement more kind of a multiyear effort? I'm just trying to get a sense of size and magnitude of what you guys have visibility to into this year.

感謝您對資產出售計劃的評論。我只是希望你能稍微擴展一下你關於取消未來計劃的股票發行的評論。這是我們今年應該有的看法嗎，因為你們確實將資產出售計劃到了 2024 年？或者這個聲明更像是多年的努力？我只是想了解你們今年所看到的事情的規模和程度。

Yes. No, thanks for the question. Look, historically, I believe we've always overachieved our asset sale targets. So last year, we overachieved by about $600 million. So we're coming into this year with some tailwinds. So we don't comment on any specific asset sale until they're closed. But we feel good.

是的。不，謝謝你的提問。從歷史上看，我相信我們總是超額實現我們的資產出售目標。去年，我們超額完成了約 6 億美元。因此，今年我們將迎來一些順風車。因此，在任何具體資產出售結束之前，我們不會發表評論。但我們感覺很好。

What has been disclosed is, for example, we have already sold the Vietnam asset and are just waiting government approval. So that's a quite large sale that we're -- it's already, let's say, it's not closed, but the sale is done. We just have the final government approval. So we feel good about it.

例如已經披露的情況是，我們已經出售了越南資產，正在等待政府批准。所以這是我們的一次相當大的銷售——可以說，它已經結束了，但銷售已經完成了。我們剛剛獲得政府的最終批准。所以我們對此感覺良好。

So the general statement is that if you look over our tenure of the last decade, we've been very frugal about issuing new equity. We've actually, in the net bought back shares, we've also paid $3 billion worth of debt. So we've been able to do this transformation being very, very stringent about issuing any new equity.

因此，總的說法是，如果你回顧我們過去十年的任期，我​​們在發行新股方面一直非常節儉。實際上，在淨回購股票中，我們也支付了價值 30 億美元的債務。因此，我們能夠在發行任何新股方面非常非常嚴格地實現這一轉變。

So depending on how the asset sales goes and our growth programs and our partnerships, we feel that we may be able to do this without any additional equity issuance. We've always talked about it being in the later years of our guidance period, and we've also mentioned that we would never do it at current valuations. So I hope that provides as much color as we can, but I think it gives you a clear notion of what our intent is.

因此，根據資產銷售的進展以及我們的成長計劃和合作夥伴關係，我們認為我們也許能夠在不發行任何額外股票的情況下做到這一點。我們一直在我們的指導期的最後幾年談論它，我們也提到我們永遠不會按照當前的估值這樣做。所以我希望它能提供盡可能多的色彩，但我認為它能讓你清楚地了解我們的意圖是什麼。

All right. That's helpful. And then I guess just you have -- just with the data center opportunity, you've established yourself pretty early as doing some of these deals with hyperscalers. And I'm just wondering, with some of your peers kind of announcing a wider framework with Microsoft earlier this week, is that something that is an opportunity to do on the AES side as well with a large customer? And how would that fit into your overall strategy? Or is that just not the focus at this point? I'm just wondering if you can kind of comment about that framework and what you think.

好的。這很有幫助。然後我想你已經——憑藉資料中心的機會，你很早就在與超大規模企業進行一些交易時確立了自己的地位。我只是想知道，本週早些時候，您的一些同行宣布了與 Microsoft 合作的更廣泛的框架，這是否是 AES 方面以及與大客戶合作的機會？這將如何適應您的整體策略？還是這不是目前的焦點？我只是想知道您是否可以對該框架以及您的想法發表評論。

Look, I think that we identified several things some years ago. So first, just looking out, as I've said many times in our meetings or calls, that we would -- we saw a shortage -- eventually a shortage of renewable projects given the increase in demand. So we had somewhat of a lag in 2020 due to tariff issues, but that was basically going to catch up. So what we were seeing is that there was going to be more demand, quite frankly, than supply for renewables, number one.

聽著，我認為我們幾年前就確定了幾件事。因此，首先，正如我在會議或電話中多次說過的那樣，我們會——我們看到了短缺——鑑於需求的增加，最終會出現可再生能源項目的短缺。因此，由於關稅問題，我們在 2020 年有些滯後，但基本上會迎頭趕上。因此，坦白說，我們看到的是，第一，再生能源的需求將超過供應。

Number two, we very early on identified data centers and technology companies as our -- really, our sweet spot in terms of future deals, and we've been working with them. So we have innovated coming up with things like hourly match carbon-free energy with the data centers.

第二，我們很早就將資料中心和技術公司確定為我們的——實際上，我們未來交易的最佳點，並且我們一直在與他們合作。因此，我們進行了創新，提出了諸如每小時與資料中心相符的無碳能源等方案。

So we've already done 6 gigawatts. So we're out ahead. These are actual projects that have been done. So we have very close relationships with them. And I would say that coming up with various ways of us helping them meet their needs, certainly things that we have been discussing for some time.

所以我們已經完成了 6 吉瓦。所以我們領先了。這些都是已經完成的實際項目。所以我們和他們有非常密切的關係。我想說的是，我們想出各種方法來幫助他們滿足他們的需求，這當然是我們已經討論了一段時間的事情。

So our real focus is on meeting their needs, and what we see is that things like pipeline. And we started building up this pipeline again several years ago, really thinking about what they would need. So finding the sites. And I'd say, the most strict about when we talk about backlog, it's a signed contract. It's not something we expect to sign.

所以我們真正的重點是滿足他們的需求，我們看到的是像管道這樣的東西。幾年前，我們再次開始建立這條管道，認真考慮他們的需求。所以尋找網站。我想說，當我們談論積壓時，最嚴格的是簽訂的合約。這不是我們期望簽署的東西。

When we talk about pipeline, it's actual having some degree of land control, and it's being in the interconnection queue. It's not we're prospecting in this area. We've had some discussions. So we feel very good about our ability to meet these clients' needs, and I think understanding very well what those needs are.

當我們談論管道時，它實際上具有一定程度的土地控制權，並且處於互連隊列中。我們並不是在這個領域進行勘探。我們進行了一些討論。因此，我們對滿足這些客戶需求的能力感到非常滿意，我認為我們非常了解這些需求是什麼。

So I don't see this really just as a zero-sum game. What we see is that the deal that was announced in the last week, an international deal, is good. And it's good because there's a lot of demand out there, and we're not going to be able to satisfy it all by ourselves.

所以我並不認為這真的只是一場零和遊戲。我們看到的是，上周宣布的一項國際協議是好的。這很好，因為有大量需求，而我們無法僅靠自己來滿足所有需求。

And second of all, I think it shows the value of having an international presence and the value of being in diversified markets to be able to satisfy their needs. So I think there's been a lot of focus on the specific technology, not enough focus on how do you satisfy the needs of those clients. So that's what we've been focused on. But quite frankly, this is nothing new to us. We've been doing this almost 5 years.

其次，我認為它顯示了擁有國際影響力的價值以及進入多元化市場以滿足他們的需求的價值。因此，我認為人們對特定技術的關注太多，而對如何滿足這些客戶的需求關注不夠。這就是我們一直在關注的重點。但坦白說，這對我們來說並不新鮮。我們這樣做已經快五年了。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Next question comes from Durgesh Chopra of Evercore ISI.

下一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 Durgesh Chopra。

Just maybe can I get your thoughts on potential tariffs? There's been talks of some antidumping tariffs, and just how you're positioned there if something were to take place?

也許我可以了解您對潛在關稅的想法嗎？有人討論過一些反傾銷關稅，如果發生什麼事情，你會如何定位？

Yes. Look, great question. Quite frankly, I'm not concerned at all about the AD/CVD, which is the antidumping compensating tariffs, I would say, for the following reasons. First, we already have pretty much everything we need on site for the remainder of this year and the majority of what we need for next year. And before any tariffs could come in place, I would expect to have everything on site for 2025. So that's the first thing.

是的。聽著，好問題。坦白說，我根本不擔心AD/CVD，即反傾銷補償關稅，我想說，原因如下。首先，我們已經在現場準備了今年剩餘時間所需的幾乎所有物品以及明年所需的大部分物品。在任何關稅到位之前，我預計 2025 年一切都將準備就緒。

So -- and then when we think about 2026, we expect to have domestic content -- domestically made solar modules. So quite frankly, I'm not concerned about this. And I think that the most important thing is look at our track record. When there was the uncertainty about tariffs in coming out in 2020, we didn't abandon or significant delay any single U.S. solar project.

因此，當我們考慮 2026 年時，我們預計會出現國產含量——國產太陽能組件。坦白說，我並不擔心這件事。我認為最重要的是看看我們的記錄。當 2020 年關稅存在不確定性時，我們沒有放棄或大幅推遲任何一個美國太陽能計畫。

So whether these countervailing duties come into place, we'll monitor it. I think the effects on the sector as a whole will be much less than the prior tariff circumvention case because the level of the duties should be significantly smaller. But I think the important thing is to have clarity so that people can find PPAs.

因此，無論這些反補貼稅是否到位，我們都會對其進行監控。我認為對整個行業的影響將比之前的關稅規避案例小得多，因為關稅水平應該要小得多。但我認為重要的是要明確，以便人們可以找到購電協議。

But specifically about AES, I am not concerned because we've always been concerned about any possibility like this and moving ahead. So we, of course, like others, have strategic relationships with suppliers, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating. So we have everything on site for this year. And before these tariffs come in place, we'll have all our solar modules for next.

但具體到 AES，我並不擔心，因為我們一直擔心任何類似的可能性並繼續前進。因此，我們當然像其他人一樣與供應商建立了戰略關係，但布丁的證明在於食用。所以今年我們已經準備好了一切。在這些關稅到位之前，我們將擁有所有的太陽能組件。

That is very clear, Andres. And then maybe can I just follow up on Nick's question regarding asset sales? Just as we think about the cadence of announcements here for the rest of the year and into 2025, do you see potential for large deal, large asset sale or maybe a large 1 buyer or a large buyer in place of like multiple small buyers or multiple small deals that you've done in the past? Maybe just -- can you discuss that?

這很清楚，安德烈斯。然後也許我可以跟進尼克關於資產出售的問題嗎？正如我們思考今年剩餘時間和2025 年發佈公告的節奏一樣，您是否認為有可能進行大型交易、大型資產出售，或者可能是一個大買家或一個大買家取代多個小買家或多個買家您過去做過的小交易嗎？也許只是──你能討論一下嗎？

Yes. Again, we don't typically comment on this. But something like, for example, the Vietnam sale or others, these would be large sales, hundreds of millions of dollars. So what I would say, you -- we will do these over time. We'll also continue to do the smaller ones, selling down of specific assets when we think that we've maximized the value that we could add. And we continue to sell down, of course, our renewable projects, as Steve explained.

是的。同樣，我們通常不會對此發表評論。但是，例如，越南銷售或其他銷售，這些將是大額銷售，數億美元。所以我想說的是，我們將隨著時間的推移做這些事情。當我們認為我們已經最大化了可以增加的價值時，我們也將繼續做較小的事情，出售特定資產。當然，正如史蒂夫解釋的那樣，我們繼續出售我們的可再生能源項目。

So these will be multiple sources of us getting additional financing. So again, we don't comment until the deal is closed. But I think it's very clear. We have a very good track record of doing this, and we're not just starting. We have some wind in our sails. So I feel very good about it.

因此，這些將是我們獲得額外融資的多種來源。再次強調，在交易完成前我們不會發表評論。但我認為這是非常清楚的。我們在這方面有著良好的記錄，而且我們才剛開始。我們的帆上有一些風。所以我對此感覺非常好。

Yes. And I would just add, Durgesh, as Andres said, we have a long track record. So it's not just about the goal, it's also about securing the best value in exiting properly. So we have a lot of pathways to do that. We have $3.5 billion is a conservative number. And it's a combination of our coal exit, our simplification of our international portfolio, monetizing some of our technology businesses and the renewables, recycling.

是的。我想補充一點，Durgesh，正如安德烈斯所說，我們有著悠久的記錄。因此，這不僅是目標的問題，還涉及確保正確退出的最佳價值。所以我們有很多途徑可以做到這一點。我們有 35 億美元，這是一個保守的數字。這是我們退出煤炭、簡化國際投資組合、將我們的一些技術業務和再生能源、回收貨幣化的結合。

So there's a number of ways. And so it allows us the luxury of ensuring that we get the appropriate value, and we're looking out in the market on all of these and transacting when we see that appropriate valuation. And we were ahead, as Andres said, by over $600 million last year. So we feel great.

所以有很多種方法。因此，它使我們能夠確保獲得適當的價值，並且我們正在市場上關注所有這些，並在看到適當的估值時進行交易。正如 Andres 所說，去年我們領先了 6 億多美元。所以我們感覺很棒。

Indeed, guys. And I apologize, but just -- I want to ask a quick question on just the pace of deployment, given your leadership in the renewable industry. Andres, just as we think about all the data center demand projections, do you -- are you concerned with the pace at which the deployment might happen? I mean, you mentioned the demand exceeding the supply. But are we going too fast? And do you -- could you see yourself in the position to be able to provide all the renewable power given the demand?

確實如此，夥計們。我很抱歉，但鑑於你們在再生能源產業的領導地位，我想問一個關於部署速度的快速問題。安德烈斯，正如我們考慮所有資料中心需求預測一樣，您是否擔心部署可能發生的速度？我的意思是，你提到需求超過供應。但我們是不是走得太快了？您是否認為自己有能力根據需求提供所有再生能源？

Let's see. I think that the -- what we're seeing is they're very concerned about getting power. They're talking about time to power, how fast your renewable projects can come online. I think that the market is beginning to realize that this growth in data center demand will be mostly powered by renewables. They are the cheapest energy, and they're going to be the fastest time to power.

讓我們來看看。我認為——我們看到的是他們非常關心獲得權力。他們談論的是發電時間，以及再生能源專案上線的速度。我認為市場開始意識到資料中心需求的成長將主要由再生能源提供動力。它們是最便宜的能源，而且將是最快的供電時間。

There was a lot of talk about, say, something like nuclear. So while existing nuclear plants can be recontracted and provide power, they aren't additional. They aren't decreasing the total carbon footprint of the system, number one. And it takes years to bring new nuclear online.

人們對諸如核能之類的話題進行了許多討論。因此，雖然現有核電廠可以重新承包並提供電力，但它們並不是額外的。第一，他們並沒有減少系統的總碳足跡。新核能上線需要數年時間。

So while I'm a believer nine nuclear in the long run, it's like, okay, time to power and bringing data centers on in the next 3 years, how am I going to power them? And that's really where we'll also play a key role. Now what do I think? I think those people who have advanced pipelines are going to be in the best position, who have the supply chain and have the projects.

因此，雖然從長遠來看我是九核的信徒，但現在是時候為資料中心供電並在未來三年內啟用，我將如何為它們供電？這確實是我們也將發揮關鍵作用的地方。現在我怎麼想？我認為那些擁有先進管道、擁有供應鏈和項目的人將處於最佳位置。

And the other thing that I find very interesting is that I think pipelines are extremely valuable, and I don't think people are valuing them enough. And I would say, just think about if you were coming in from zero to create a pipeline of, say, 50 gigawatts in the U.S., how much would that cost you? And those pipelines aren't just for projects in the next 2 to 3 years. Those pipelines are going to be serving projects certainly within the next 5 and beyond that.

我發現非常有趣的另一件事是，我認為管道非常有價值，但我認為人們對它們的重視程度不夠。我想說，想想如果你從零開始在美國創造一條 50 吉瓦的管道，這會花你多少錢？這些管道不僅適用於未來 2 到 3 年的專案。這些管道肯定會在未來 5 年甚至更長時間內為專案提供服務。

So I think that, to answer your question, there is a lot of pipelines in the state, there's a lot of interconnection. The question will be those developers who will be able to bring them on in time for the data centers, and I think it will require flexibility. So I hope that answers your question. And this view has not changed. What we have seen, I would say, is that data center growth, certainly in the last year, has accelerated. But we saw a huge corporate demand coming, and data center is being part of that.

所以我認為，為了回​​答你的問題，州內有很多管道，有很多互連。問題在於那些開發人員能夠及時將它們引入資料中心，我認為這需要靈活性。所以我希望這能回答你的問題。而這個觀點至今沒有改變。我想說的是，我們所看到的是，資料中心的成長（當然在去年）已經加速。但我們看到龐大的企業需求即將到來，而資料中心就是其中的一部分。

Thank you, Durgesh.

謝謝你，杜爾吉什。

Our next question comes from Richard Sunderland of JPMorgan.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根大通的理查德桑德蘭。

Maybe picking up on that last question from Durgesh. I'm curious if you could speak a little bit more to transmission constraints and how that's being impacted by this accelerating pace. You obviously have an interesting perspective, both on the commercial side and on the utility side. Curious again how you're positioned from an interconnection perspective, the pipeline for value there? And is there ways to maybe realize even more of that value through unlocking transmission?

也許是從杜爾吉什那裡得到的最後一個問題。我很好奇您是否能多談談傳輸限制以及這種加速速度對傳輸限制有何影響。顯然，無論是在商業方面還是在公用事業方面，您都有一個有趣的觀點。再次好奇您如何從互連的角度定位，即那裡的價值管道？有沒有辦法透過解鎖傳輸來實現更多價值？

Sure. Look, again, that's something we've also been working on for some time. So I think here in the states, the most specific project I can talk about is our use of dynamic line rating. And this allowed us to place a 400-megawatt hour battery project in Indianapolis that otherwise would have not been as possible. So dynamic line rating, very simply, is it actually takes into account monitors the actual state of transmission lines because transmission lines are rated at a capacity for usually is like the worst possible conditions, which, thankfully, don't always exist.

當然。再說一遍，這也是我們已經努力了一段時間的。因此，我認為在美國，我可以談論的最具體的項目是我們對動態線路評級的使用。這使得我們能夠在印第安納波利斯建立一個 400 兆瓦時的電池項目，否則這是不可能的。因此，動態線路額定值非常簡單，它實際上考慮了監控輸電線路的實際狀態，因為輸電線路的額定容量通常類似於最壞的可能條件，幸運的是，這種情況並不總是存在。

Next is we have the grid booster, which Fluence has been doing, for example, in Germany, where you actually, again, use existing transmission lines with banks of batteries to transmit energy on those times when they're underutilized. And look, the typical transmission line is utilized 50% of capacity. So you have a lot of excess capacity there. So definitely, batteries is a way of using them on those off-peak hours.

接下來是電網助推器，Fluence 一直在這樣做，例如在德國，實際上，您再次使用現有的帶有電池組的傳輸線在電池未得到充分利用的時候傳輸能量。看一下，典型的輸電線路利用率為 50%。所以那裡有很多過剩產能。所以毫無疑問，電池是在非高峰時段使用它們的一種方式。

Now look, there is no one silver bullet, but this can avoid billions in costs and decades of permitting. And so they have a massive project in Germany to get this done. And that's not unique to Germany. There are places where we could do that in the States. So the question is why isn't this being more discussed? And really, it's not a technical issue. We're a very solid ground, is what I'm saying here. The issue is who gets to own the batteries? Who determines the dispatch? And how do you remunerate that dispatch?

現在看來，沒有一種靈丹妙藥，但這可以避免數十億美元的成本和數十年的許可。因此他們在德國有一個龐大的計畫來完成這個任務。這並不是德國獨有的。在美國有些地方我們可以這樣做。那麼問題是為什麼沒有對此進行更多討論呢？事實上，這不是一個技術問題。我在這裡要說的是，我們的基礎非常堅實。問題是誰可以擁有電池？誰決定調度？您如何支付派遣費用？

And look, some of the business models actually -- you can make more money to invest more. So avoiding cost is not necessarily what everybody wants. But that is one way. Again, we're looking at a big project in Chile. So again, I think that could be more applicable in the states. It's really a regulatory issue. Other things is, quite frankly, getting sites where you have interconnections that also would be easy for people to put data centers in that same region is something again that, from day 1, that we have been working on.

看看，有些商業模式實際上——你可以賺更多的錢來進行更多的投資。因此，避免成本不一定是每個人都想要的。但這是一種方式。我們再次關注智利的一個大計畫。再說一次，我認為這可能更適用於美國。這確實是一個監管問題。坦白說，其他事情是，從第一天開始，我們就一直在努力獲得具有互連的站點，並且人們可以輕鬆地將資料中心放置在同一區域。

So those are all the ways. There will be others, but the ones I'm mentioning are those that are technically known today. But then look, there's also -- we have Uplight, our investment in Uplight, which just merged without AutoGrid, for virtual power plants and really the orchestration of grid scale energy resources. So those are other ways.

所以這些就是所有的方法。還會有其他的，但我提到的那些是當今技術上已知的。但你看，還有 - 我們還有 Uplight，我們對 Uplight 的投資，它剛剛在沒有 AutoGrid 的情況下合併，用於虛擬發電廠以及真正的電網規模能源資源的編排。所以這些都是其他方式。

It's also a question of more advanced software and better understanding, things like, what we talked about, our proprietary AI system for predicting next-day wind bidding engines. All those things help make better use out of existing transmission. So I think you correctly identified that transmission will be one of the bottlenecks. We'll have to be creative about it, not only the suppliers of the energy but also the consumers.

這也是一個更先進的軟體和更好的理解的問題，例如我們談論的，我們用於預測第二天風競價引擎的專有人工智慧系統。所有這些都有助於更好地利用現有的傳輸。所以我認為你正確地認識到傳輸將是瓶頸之一。我們必須發揮創造力，不僅是能源供應商，也是消費者。

No, that's very helpful color, and I appreciate all the context of that. Maybe switching gears. Hydrogen, overall, been an active focus area for you, featured heavily in some of your updates last year. Just curious to get a temp check on that front, what you're focused on now, what we should be watching in terms of updates on the hydrogen front over the balance of the year.

不，這是非常有用的顏色，我很欣賞它的所有背景。也許換個檔位吧。總體而言，氫一直是您積極關注的領域，在去年的一些更新中佔有重要地位。只是想對這方面進行臨時檢查，您現在關注的是什麼，我們應該在今年餘下的時間裡關注氫方面的更新。

Yes. Look, we have the big project in Texas, a joint venture with Air Products, which is the largest seller of hydrogen in the world. That continues to progress. But we're still waiting for the final treasury regulations in terms of what qualifies as green hydrogen, what is the carbon intensity and what is the degree of tax credits you get on the different factors. So once that comes out, we continue to make progress, and we feel good about it. And also that is, quite frankly, the most advanced green hydrogen project in the U.S. with a real offtaker.

是的。看，我們在德克薩斯州有一個大項目，是與空氣產品公司的合資企業，空氣產品公司是世界上最大的氫氣銷售商。這還在繼續進步。但我們仍在等待最終的財政部法規，以了解什麼是綠氫、碳強度是多少、不同因素所獲得的稅收抵免程度。因此，一旦結果出來，我們就會繼續取得進展，我們對此感覺良好。坦白說，這也是美國最先進的綠氫項目，擁有真正的承購商。

Thank you, Rich.

謝謝你，里奇。

Next question comes from David Arcaro of Morgan Stanley.

下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的大衛‧阿卡羅。

It looks like a bit of a smaller addition in terms of renewables origination this quarter than you had in the last few. I was wondering if you could speak to that and maybe describe the trends you're seeing near term in terms of renewables origination.

就再生能源發電量而言，本季的新增量似乎比過去幾季要小一些。我想知道您是否可以談談這一點，並描述您近期在再生能源起源方面看到的趨勢。

Yes, yes. I'm not sure the data you're looking at, but we had actually quite a very good quarter. I think it was 1.2 gigawatts signed in the quarter, David. So we're very, very pleased. And also very pleased that we were able to announce Amazon as our Bellefield customer, which is really a total of 2 gigawatts with Amazon, including the first phase from last year and then the second phase. And so that's an example of the things we've been doing with data centers on a very large scale.

是的，是的。我不確定您正在查看的數據，但我們實際上度過了一個非常好的季度。 David，我認為本季簽署了 1.2 吉瓦的合約。所以我們非常非常高興。我們也非常高興能夠宣布亞馬遜成為我們 Bellefield 的客戶，亞馬遜總共提供了 2 吉瓦的電力，包括去年的第一階段和第二階段。這就是我們在大規模資料中心所做的事情的一個例子。

So we've done a lot in the first quarter. We've been active not only in signing, but also in executing and spreading our execution throughout the year, as I mentioned. So we had many more megawatts installed in this quarter. And as such, our earnings for the year will be much more balanced. But no, we feel really good about our signings target. The demand is stronger than ever.

所以我們在第一季做了很多事情。正如我所提到的，我們不僅在簽約方面非常積極，而且在全年中都積極執行和傳播我們的執行力。因此，我們在本季安裝了更多兆瓦的電力。因此，我們今年的收入將更加平衡。但不，我們對我們的引援目標感覺非常好。需求比以往任何時候都更加強烈。

And I think the deal announced earlier this week with Microsoft, as Andres said, it's just one example of what we've been saying is that the renewables is where these folks come first. And that was a 10-gigawatt agreement. And so it dwarfs anything that's been signed with like a nuke or things like that.

我認為本週早些時候與微軟宣布的交易，正如安德烈斯所說，這只是我們一直所說的一個例子，即可再生能源是這些人的首要任務。那是一份 10 吉瓦的協議。因此，它使任何簽署的東西（例如核武或類似的東西）都相形見絀。

So -- but as Andres also said, this is not a zero-sum game, and there is much more demand here and continuing to come. And so we feel really good about our pipeline and the maturity of it and where it's located and its positions in the queues. So no, I think our signing progress has been excellent and still feel really good about where we're headed for the rest of the year.

所以——但正如安德烈斯也所說，這不是一場零和遊戲，這裡有更多的需求，而且還會繼續出現。因此，我們對我們的管道及其成熟度、它的位置及其在隊列中的位置感到非常滿意。所以不，我認為我們的簽約進展非常出色，並且對我們今年剩餘時間的發展方向仍然感到非常滿意。

Okay. Great. And yes, I was going to go back to that multiyear kind of framework agreement that we saw earlier this week. I was wondering, are you seeing that same level of demand where data center companies are getting potentially more aggressive, willing to contract out further into the decade where you could be? Or should we start to see potentially deals, bigger deals getting signed and looking further out in your pipeline?

好的。偉大的。是的，我要回到本週早些時候我們看到的那種多年期框架協議。我想知道，您是否看到了同樣程度的需求，資料中心公司可能變得更加積極，願意在您可能達到的十年內進一步外包？或者我們應該開始看到潛在的交易、更大的交易簽署並在您的管道中進一步尋找？

Well, I think that's sort of a framework agreement. And I think what we've been doing is negotiating big deals and, I would say, with several of the hyperscalers. So we're not just slowly focused on one. And so we're looking at how to solve their demands. And quite frankly, they have slightly different preferences where they're going. We have data center deals with Microsoft in Chile, for example.

嗯，我認為這是一個框架協議。我認為我們一直在做的是與幾家超大規模企業談判大筆交易。所以我們不僅僅是慢慢地專注於一個。因此，我們正在研究如何解決他們的需求。坦白說，他們對要去的地方的偏好略有不同。例如，我們與微軟在智利簽訂了資料中心協議。

So what they're looking for is people who can provide, of course, U.S., that's the biggest, the fastest growth. But I think there are very interesting international opportunities, and it depends where you have your footprint. So I believe the deal that we're talking about in Brookfield, they have more Asia and European capabilities. And quite frankly, we have decided not to be in those markets.

所以他們尋找的是能夠提供的人，當然，美國，那是最大、最快的成長。但我認為有非常有趣的國際機會，這取決於你的足跡在哪裡。所以我相信我們在布魯克菲爾德談論的交易，他們擁有更多的亞洲和歐洲能力。坦白說，我們決定不進入這些市場。

Thanks, David.

謝謝，大衛。

Our next question comes from Angie Storozynski of Seaport.

我們的下一個問題來自 Seaport 的 Angie Storozynski。

So I know we talked about it in the past, but I just wanted to go back to this, how much it really costs to develop these renewables and how seemingly little of an EBITDA and free cash flow accretion you guys are going to get from it? And even using your math, right, with this the financing of CapEx and the amount of money that you were planning to spend on renewables from the Analyst Day, it would -- and you would end up with like about $2.7 billion of your equity contribution and, say, $350 million of free cash flow on the back of it, just again using the target return. Isn't that -- I'm just wondering if that's enough? I mean, is it time to maybe up this return expectations? Or is it just simply that that's how competitive the market is, and you just have to accept the terms? All I'm trying to say is that it doesn't seem like it's generating enough EBITDA or free cash flow from the amount of investments that those renewables require.

所以我知道我們過去討論過這個問題，但我只是想回到這個問題，開發這些可再生能源的實際成本是多少，以及你們從中獲得的 EBITDA 和自由現金流增加看起來是多麼少？即使使用你的數學，正確的，通過資本支出的融資以及你計劃在分析師日起在可再生能源上花費的金額，它也會 - 你最終會得到大約 27 億美元的股權貢獻比如說，3.5億美元的自由現金流，同樣使用目標回報。我只是想知道這是否足夠？我的意思是，是時候提高報酬預期了嗎？還是只是因為市場競爭如此激烈，而您只需要接受這些條款？我想說的是，它似乎沒有從這些再生能源所需的投資中產生足夠的 EBITDA 或自由現金流。

Yes. I would disagree. I mean, we can maybe go into more detail offline. But I think the way to -- first of all, realize that we do renewables not only in the U.S. We do it, for example, a lot of renewables in Chile, where you don't have any of the upfront tax attributes. But it's a different, let's say, model, but actually, our returns are better there. I would say, given the tax attributes in the states, what you have is -- thinking of it's sort of a flow in the stock, right?

是的。我不同意。我的意思是，我們也許可以離線討論更多細節。但我認為，首先要認識到我們不僅在美國生產可再生能源，例如，我們在智利生產很多可再生能源，在那裡你沒有任何預付稅收屬性。但這是一個不同的模型，但實際上，我們的回報在那裡更好。我想說，考慮到各州的稅收屬性，你所擁有的是——認為這是一種股票流動，對嗎？

So you get a lot of the tax attributes is cash, right? So you use that cash to pay down the construction debt. And then you're left with a project with a lower amount of debt going forward. And then you also get cash immediately by selling down to minority partners who want -- in the example we gave, like a solar bond. So they're willing to take lower returns.

那麼你得到的很多稅收屬性就是現金吧？所以你用這筆現金來償還建築債。然後你就剩下一個債務金額較低的項目。然後你也可以透過出售給想要的少數合作夥伴立即獲得現金——在我們給出的例子中，就像太陽能債券一樣。因此他們願意接受較低的回報。

So on the project itself, you do have a very good cash returns for the total cost of the project. Because again, you're getting almost 50% back and right after you commission it. Now when you're looking at the EBITDA numbers, realize that we're growing very fast. So last year, our commissioning of projects grew 100%. So those projects are now coming online over time.

所以就專案本身而言，相對於專案的總成本來說，你確實獲得了非常好的現金回報。因為在您委託之後，您將獲得近 50% 的回報。現在，當您查看 EBITDA 數字時，就會意識到我們的成長速度非常快。所以去年我們的投產項目成長了100%。隨著時間的推移，這些項目現在正在上線。

So no, I don't think -- I mean, I think returns will increase. We did increase our targeted returns for the U.S. because of what we're seeing in the market and our increased, let's say, maturity and efficiency. And I would remind you that, again, without tax attributes, we're getting even better returns internationally.

所以不，我不認為——我的意思是，我認為回報會增加。由於我們在市場上看到的情況以及我們的成熟度和效率的提高，我們確實提高了美國的目標回報。我想再次提醒您，在沒有稅收屬性的情況下，我們在國際上獲得了更好的回報。

And another comment on it, when people talk about the competitiveness of renewables, realize that solar panels in the states are costing 2 to 3x what they cost internationally. So the cost of the megawatt hours from renewables with energy storage on it is much, much cheaper, and then certainly the cheapest energy in most places that we operate. So again, we would -- can go into more discussions about it, but we feel very good about the cash profile of renewables and what they're generating.

另一條評論是，當人們談論再生能源的競爭力時，意識到美國太陽能板的成本是國際成本的 2 到 3 倍。因此，帶有儲能的可再生能源的兆瓦時成本要便宜得多，而且肯定是我們運營的大多數地方最便宜的能源。因此，我們可以對此進行更多討論，但我們對再生能源的現金狀況及其發電量感到非常滿意。

Yes. I would just add, Angie, also on the EBITDA profile, the EBITDA in the U.S. is growing significantly. I think you're not seeing it in part because of some of the things happening in LatAm around the El Niño, where we've had lower hydro generation, for example, in Panama, as I said in my comments, Brazil has had very low wind in the first quarter.

是的。安吉，我想補充一點，關於 EBITDA 概況，美國的 EBITDA 正在顯著成長。我認為你沒有看到這一點，部分原因是拉丁美洲在厄爾尼諾現象周圍發生了一些事情，我們的水力發電量較低，例如在巴拿馬，正如我在評論中所說，巴西第一季風力非常小。

And then frankly, Q1 and even in the U.S. is a very low solar irradiation quarter, so you won't see the EBITDA growth to the same degree. But within that number, there's substantial U.S. growth throughout this year, but it is somewhat offset by a couple of those other factors outside the U.S. So the EBITDA is strong.

坦白說，第一季甚至在美國都是太陽輻射非常低的季度，因此您不會看到 EBITDA 達到相同程度的成長。但在這個數字中，美國今年全年都有大幅成長，但在一定程度上被美國以外的其他一些因素所抵消，因此 EBITDA 很強勁。

And the other thing I'd mention in terms of developing renewables, we've been perfecting this machine for many, many years. So the development has gotten quite efficient. We are able to drive high success rates through our development process. And so that cost continues to come down, relative to bringing projects successfully online. So -- but we can go into more detail perhaps separately, but it's a very attractive profile for this business.

關於開發再生能源，我要提到的另一件事是，我們多年來一直在完善這台機器。所以開發變得相當有效率。我們能夠透過我們的開發過程提高成功率。因此，相對於成功上線專案而言，成本持續下降。所以——但我們也許可以單獨討論更多細節，但這對這項業務來說是一個非常有吸引力的概況。

And then just separately, so you mentioned about -- mentioned all of these projects that you developed with hyperscalers. I mean those are virtual PPAs, right? So there's -- but not directly feeding into these data centers. And I'm just wondering, I mean, is it like in a close geographic proximity, given that I think there's more and more discussion about the variability of the grid and transmission congestion?

然後分別提到，您提到了您與超大規模企業開發的所有這些項目。我的意思是這些是虛擬購電協議，對吧？所以有——但不是直接輸入到這些資料中心。我只是想知道，我的意思是，鑑於我認為關於電網可變性和傳輸擁塞的討論越來越多，這是否就像在地理上接近一樣？

Again, I understand that hyperscalers have the net-zero goals. But at the end of the day, they have to have access to reliable power in the sort of a proximity of these facilities. So again, I'm honestly trying to understand how renewables just built somewhere far will help keeping the lights on in these 24/7 demand machines.

再次，我知道超大規模企業有淨零目標。但歸根結底，他們必須在這些設施附近獲得可靠的電力。再說一次，我真誠地試圖了解剛在遠處建造的可再生能源將如何幫助這些 24/7 需求機器保持亮燈。

Yes, Angie. It's good -- all good points. And so you're absolutely right that the proximity is important within the region. Now the co-location, I think, is overblown in terms of you're adding a new load to the grid, regardless, that needs interconnection and approval, regardless of where this data center is. But what are they really looking for, as Andres said, they're looking for renewables and they're looking for additionality, meaning new renewables.

是的，安吉。這很好——所有的優點。因此，您認為鄰近性在該地區非常重要，這是絕對正確的。現在，我認為，就向網格添加新負載而言，託管已經被誇大了，無論該資料中心位於何處，都需要互連和批准。但正如安德烈斯所說，他們真正在尋找的是什麼，他們正在尋找可再生能源，他們正在尋找額外性，即新的可再生能源。

And so you do want to do that in a smart way by minimizing your transmission charges, so you want them to be within a region of the data center. And then you want to be able to add batteries in many cases. And we see tremendous upside. We've been developing battery storage, both technology in Fluence as well as battery storage projects in our portfolio for a very long time, a decade plus.

因此，您確實希望透過最小化傳輸費用來以智慧方式做到這一點，因此您希望它們位於資料中心的某個區域內。然後您希望在許多情況下能夠添加電池。我們看到了巨大的上升空間。十多年來，我們一直在開發電池存儲，包括 Fluence 的技術以及我們產品組合中的電池存儲項目。

So that's a huge advantage for us in being able to meet their carbon-free needs throughout the entire day. And so being able to have those battery sites in the region with the solar, with the wind sites, is key in having that flexibility. So it's not a market you can tap into just by jumping into this. You have to have been -- had foresight for 5 years-plus to be advanced in developing all these technologies within these regions to do that.

因此，這對我們來說是一個巨大的優勢，能夠全天滿足他們的無碳需求。因此，能夠在擁有太陽能和風能的地區擁有這些電池站點是實現這種靈活性的關鍵。所以這不是一個你可以透過跳入進入的市場。要做到這一點，您必須具有 5 年以上的遠見，才能在這些地區開發所有這些技術方面取得領先。

And then the other thing I would say is that because -- and we've talked about this, the data center locations are expanding more towards the middle of the country and so it's opening up many more locations, which are -- have much more land availability for solar, for wind, in the regions like MISO, into ERCOT, less congested in the Coast. And so that's an advantage in terms of ensuring you're locating your data centers close to your generation sites as well.

然後我要說的另一件事是，因為 - 我們已經討論過這一點，數據中心位置正在向該國中部擴展，因此它正在開放更多的位置，這些位置 - 擁有更多MISO 等地區的太陽能、風能土地可用性，進入ERCOT，沿海地區不太擁擠。因此，這對於確保您將資料中心也定位在靠近發電站點的位置而言是一個優勢。

Yes. Angie, these are really good points because the other thing is that the new AI requires less latency, immediacy, than traditional data centers. So it opens up the geographic possibilities. But we've always felt, for example, on green hydrogen as an example, that, first, it has to be regional to minimize transmission. Second, that it should be additional.

是的。安吉，這些都是很好的觀點，因為另一件事是，與傳統資料中心相比，新的人工智慧需要更少的延遲和即時性。因此它開啟了地理上的可能性。但我們一直認為，以綠氫為例，首先，它必須是區域性的，以最大限度地減少傳輸。其次，它應該是額外的。

And the fact that it's already a match is something we can do. So in the particular case of our green hydrogen project, that 1 is actually pretty much co-located, it's like across the street. So that's a particular case where that works. But I think that it very much depends on the transmission conditions. But just opening up of more geographies is very favorable.

事實上，這已經是一場比賽，這是我們可以做到的。因此，在我們的綠氫計畫的特殊情況下，1實際上幾乎位於同一地點，就像在街對面一樣。所以這是一個有效的特殊情況。但我認為這很大程度取決於傳輸條件。但僅僅開放更多地區就非常有利了。

Our final question comes from Michael Sullivan of Wolfe Research.

我們的最後一個問題來自沃爾夫研究中心的邁克爾·沙利文。

I wanted to just circle back on the utility side and the data center angle there. I think you alluded to it a little bit, but can you give a little more color on what you're seeing, I guess, particularly in Indiana. And do you think the IRP you have out there is enough to cover any particularly large announcements that have been made? How should we be thinking about that?

我想回到公用事業方面和資料中心角度。我想你稍微提到了這一點，但是你能否對你所看到的內容提供更多的色彩，我想，特別是在印第安納州。您認為現有的 IRP 是否足以涵蓋已發布的任何特別重大的公告？我們該如何思考這個問題？

Let's see. What I had mentioned in my speech is that, certainly, that as we're involved in these negotiations with hyperscalers due to transmission and other attributes, there is interest in our 2 utilities for possible locations. Now this would be outside of the IRP per se because this would be an additional demand that would be put onto our systems.

讓我們來看看。我在演講中提到的是，當然，由於傳輸和其他屬性，我們參與了與超大規模企業的談判，因此人們對我們的兩個公用事業公司可能的地點感興趣。現在這將超出 IRP 本身的範圍，因為這將是對我們系統的額外要求。

Okay. But nothing specific in the works anymore?

好的。但現在沒有什麼具體的工作了嗎？

We have nothing specific to announce at this time. We just thought it was important because when we talk about it, we talked about what we've done purely. We haven't talked about -- well, this is the first time we mentioned, for example, the megawatts that we're doing and actually providing that energy for other utilities to more data centers, and we might be able to do some for ourselves.

目前我們沒有什麼具體要宣布的。我們只是認為這很重要，因為當我們談論它時，我們純粹談論我們所做的事情。我們還沒有討論過——嗯，這是我們第一次提到，例如，我們正在做的兆瓦電力，實際上是為其他公用事業公司和更多數據中心提供能源，我們也許可以為我們自己。

Yes. So I would look at it as the plan has upside, really, is what it is about, Mike. So we have assumed sort of line of sight to what we know in industrial development in Ohio, but they are becoming very attractive places not only for data centers, but also chips manufacturing, battery manufacturing, we talked about. So there will be some discrete additions that I think will be upside to our plan down the road.

是的。所以我認為這個計劃確實有好處，這就是它的意義所在，麥克。因此，我們對俄亥俄州的工業發展進行了某種程度的了解，但它們正在成為非常有吸引力的地方，不僅對資料中心，而且對我們談到的晶片製造、電池製造也很有吸引力。因此，我認為將會有一些離散的補充，這對我們未來的計劃有好處。

In closing, Steve brought up a very good point. But what we're seeing is growth in corporate demand. It's not just data centers. So what you're seeing in our service areas is, for example, a reindustrialization of the U.S. So you have onshoring, whether it be EVs, battery manufacturing, panel manufacturing, other things, which is growing very substantially. And then you have to add in the load for electrification because people have been talking about EVs as if they're not selling, but the fact is they're growing very fast.

最後，史蒂夫提出了一個非常好的觀點。但我們看到的是企業需求的成長。這不僅僅是數據中心。例如，你在我們的服務領域看到的是美國的再工業化。然後你必須增加電氣化的負載，因為人們一直在談論電動車，就好像它們沒有銷售一樣，但事實是它們成長得非常快。

Charging stations are growing. They're just growing less than some of the forecasts that people have put out there. But if you look at, for example, China, 50% of vehicles sold are EVs. So what we see is an increased demand from corporations from all of these sources. We have particularly focused on tech companies and data centers as really our sweet spot. But -- and internationally, it's the same. What we want is long-term dollar-denominated contracts with investment-grade offtakers. And again, we're doing well on both. So very optimistic about the sector.

充電站正在增加。它們的成長速度只是低於人們的一些預測。但如果你看看中國，你會發現 50% 的汽車銷售量是電動車。因此，我們看到企業對所有這些來源的需求都在增加。我們特別關注科技公司和資料中心，這確實是我們的最佳選擇。但是——在國際上，情況是一樣的。我們想要的是與投資級承購商簽訂以美元計價的長期合約。再說一遍，我們在這兩方面都做得很好。因此對該行業非常樂觀。

Okay. And if I could just squeeze one last one in, just latest thoughts on using Fluence as a funding source.

好的。如果我能擠出最後一個，那就是關於使用 Fluence 作為資金來源的最新想法。

We don't comment on that, quite frankly. And Fluence has its call later on in the week. So -- or next week. So no, we can't give any further color on that.

坦白說，我們對此不予評論。 Fluence 將在本週稍後接到電話。那麼——或者下週。所以不，我們不能對此給出任何進一步的說明。

Thank you.

謝謝。

With that, I'll hand back to Susan Harcourt.

說到這裡，我將把問題交還給蘇珊哈考特 (Susan Harcourt)。

All right. We thank everybody for joining us on today's call. As always, the IR team will be available to answer any follow-up questions you may have. Thank you, and have a nice day.

好的。我們感謝大家參加今天的電話會議。像往常一樣，IR 團隊將隨時回答您可能提出的任何後續問題。謝謝你，祝你有美好的一天。

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect your lines.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入。現在您可以斷開線路。