恩橋 (ENB) 2024 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to the Enbridge Inc. First Quarter 2024 Conference Call. My name is Rebecca Morley, and I'm the Vice President of Investor Relations. Joining me this morning are Greg Ebel, President and CEO; Pat Murray, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and the heads of each of our business units, Colin Gruending, Liquids Pipelines; Cynthia Hansen, Gas Transmission and Midstream; Michele Harradence, Gas Distribution and Storage; and Matthew Akman, Renewable Power.

早上好，歡迎參加 Enbridge Inc. 2024 年第一季電話會議。我叫麗貝卡·莫利，是投資人關係副總裁。今天早上和我一起來的是總裁兼執行長 Greg Ebel；帕特‧莫瑞（Pat Murray），執行副總裁兼財務長；以及我們每個業務部門的負責人，液體管道部門 Colin Gruending； Cynthia Hansen，天然氣輸送和中游；米歇爾‧哈拉登斯 (Michele Harradence)，天然氣輸送與儲存；和馬修阿克曼，可再生能源。

(Operator Instructions) Please note that this conference is being recorded. As per usual, this call is being webcast, and I encourage those listening to follow along with the supporting slides. We'll try to keep the call to roughly 1 hour. (Operator Instructions) We'll be prioritizing questions from the investment community, so if you are a member of the media, please direct your inquiries to our communications team, who will be happy to respond. As always, our Investor Relations team will be available following the call for any follow-up questions.

（操作員說明）請注意，本次會議正在錄製中。像往常一樣，本次電話會議正在網路直播，我鼓勵聽眾跟隨支持幻燈片進行觀看。我們會盡量將通話時間控制在 1 小時左右。 （操作員說明）我們將優先考慮投資界的問題，因此，如果您是媒體成員，請將您的問題直接發送給我們的通訊團隊，他們將很樂意回覆。像往常一樣，我們的投資者關係團隊將在電話會議後解答任何後續問題。

On to Slide 2, where I'll remind you that we'll be referring to forward-looking information on today's presentation and Q&A. By its nature, this information contains forecast assumptions and expectations about future outcomes, which are subject to the risks and uncertainties outlined here and discussed more fully in our public disclosure filings. We'll also be referring to non-GAAP measures summarized below.

在投影片 2 上，我將提醒您，我們將提及有關​​今天的簡報和問答的前瞻性資訊。就其性質而言，這些資訊包含對未來結果的預測假設和預期，這些假設和預期受到此處概述的風險和不確定性的影響，並在我們的公開揭露文件中進行了更全面的討論。我們也將參考下面總結的非公認會計原則措施。

And with that, I'll turn it over to Greg Ebel.

接下來，我會將其交給 Greg Ebel。

Thanks very much, Rebecca, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us for this call. I'm pleased to be here today to report record financial results for the quarter, driven by strong operational performance and strong energy fundamentals. I'll provide a quick recap for Q1 and update you on each of our businesses, and then Pat will speak further to our financial performance, capital allocation priorities and future growth outlook. And as always, the management team is here to answer any questions that the investment community has, following our presentation.

非常感謝，麗貝卡，大家早安。感謝您參加本次通話。我很高興今天在這裡報告本季創紀錄的財務業績，這得益於強勁的營運業績和強勁的能源基本面。我將快速回顧第一季度，並向您介紹我們每項業務的最新情況，然後帕特將進一步談論我們的財務業績、資本配置優先事項和未來成長前景。像往常一樣，在我們的演講之後，管理團隊將在這裡回答投資界的任何問題。

I'm pleased to report adjusted EBITDA is up 11% year-over-year, and we're well on our way to meeting our financial guidance for 2024. We saw high utilization rates across our systems and safety, which remains a top priority was also excellent during the quarter.

我很高興地報告調整後的 EBITDA 年成長 11%，我們正在順利實現 2024 年的財務指導。

As you know, the acquisition of East Ohio Gas closed on March 6, which further diversifies our business, extends our growth outlook and enhances the stable cash flow profile of our asset base. As a reminder, we've already secured over 85% of the required financing for the U.S. gas utility acquisitions and will fund the remainder using a combination of alternatives, which may include hybrid or bond issuances, capital recycling and ATM issuances. We have the capacity to utilize any and all of these sources of funding and so that we can be in a position to optimize market conditions. You'll see us updating and preparing security filings to preserve this funding flexibility and ensure we complete all the utility acquisition funding well in advance of year end.

如您所知，對東俄亥俄天然氣公司的收購於 3 月 6 日完成，這進一步使我們的業務多元化，擴展了我們的成長前景，並增強了我們資產基礎的穩定現金流狀況。提醒一下，我們已經獲得了美國天然氣公用事業收購所需融資的 85% 以上，並將使用多種替代方案組合為剩餘資金提供資金，其中可能包括混合或債券發行、資本回收和 ATM 發行。我們有能力利用所有這些資金來源，以便我們能夠優化市場條件。您將看到我們更新和準備安全文件，以保持這種融資靈活性，並確保我們在年底前完成所有公用事業收購融資。

We closed the Alliance-Aux Sable divestiture in April, continuing our track record of recycling capital at attractive multiples. The Mainline Tolling Agreement was recently approved as filed by the Canadian Energy Regulator. The Mainline continues to operate at or near capacity, and we are ready to add additional egress as our customers need it.

我們在四月完成了 Alliance-Aux Sable 的剝離，繼續以極具吸引力的倍數回收資本。加拿大能源監管機構最近批准了幹線收費協議。主線繼續以滿載或接近滿載運行，我們準備根據客戶的需求增加額外的出口。

We had exciting growth announcements in the U.S. Gulf Coast with our recent Whistler JV, the sanctioning of Sparta Pipeline and the acquisition of 2 marine docks and adjacent land at our Ingleside export facility. We've also recently progressed to full FID on the Tennessee Ridgeline Expansion project, following the TVA's decision to construct a new natural gas combined-cycle plant in Kingston, Tennessee. This project further underlines the criticality of pipelines in fueling lower-carbon power via gas generation.

我們在美國墨西哥灣沿岸宣布了令人興奮的成長消息，包括我們最近成立的惠斯勒合資企業、斯巴達管道的批准以及在我們的 Ingleside 出口設施收購 2 個海上碼頭和鄰近土地。繼田納西州管理局決定在田納西州金斯頓建造一座新的天然氣聯合循環工廠後，我們最近也對田納西州山脊線擴建工程進行了全面的最終投資決定。該項目進一步強調了管道透過天然氣發電為低碳電力提供燃料的重要性。

Today, we published our 23rd annual sustainability report, which highlights our performance and approach to environmental, social and governance goals. Now, before I touch on these developments further, let me take a moment to highlight what really was a first-rate financial performance in the quarter. Pat will be getting into this in more detail later, but we're going to be presenting side-by-side results, those being adjusted actuals and the base business we guided against. We believe this transparency will let you see our base business against our '24 guidance as well as the all-in results, which include a partial month of owning East Ohio Gas and all our utility financings to date.

今天，我們發布了第 23 份年度永續發展報告，重點介紹了我們在實現環境、社會和治理目標方面的表現和方法。現在，在進一步討論這些進展之前，讓我花點時間強調本季真正一流的財務表現。帕特稍後將更詳細地討論這一點，但我們將並排展示結果，那些經過調整的實際情況和我們指導的基本業務。我們相信，這種透明度將使您根據我們的 24 指南看到我們的基本業務以及全部結果，其中包括擁有東俄亥俄天然氣公司的部分月份以及迄今為止我們的所有公用事業融資。

Starting with all in, our EBITDA is up 11% and DCF per share up 4% from last year, primarily due to strong asset performance across Liquids, Gas Transmission and Renewables as well as a partial month contribution from EOG. Our balance sheet remains well positioned ahead of the closings of Questar and PSNC at 4.7x debt to EBITDA. Since this number is as of March 31, these leverage numbers don't yet include the beneficial proceeds from the sale of Alliance and Aux Sable.

從全部投入開始，我們的 EBITDA 比去年增長了 11%，每股 DCF 增長了 4%，這主要是由於液體、天然氣傳輸和可再生能源的強勁資產表現以及 EOG 的部分月度貢獻。在 Questar 和 PSNC 關閉之前，我們的資產負債表仍處於良好狀態，債務為 EBITDA 的 4.7 倍。由於該數字截至 3 月 31 日，因此這些槓桿數字尚未包括出售 Alliance 和 Aux Sable 所獲得的收益。

Touching briefly on the base business, we are very much on track with our financial guidance. In fact, our base business EBITDA and DCF per share are up 8% and debt-to-EBITDA is at 4.6x. Under both views, we've had a record financial quarter and we look forward to keeping that momentum going. Our industry-leading business risk supports our long-held leverage target of 4.5 to 5x. Enbridge has virtually no commodity price exposure and over 98% of our earnings are generated from either cost of service or take-or-pay contracted assets and 80% of our EBITDA is earned from assets with protection against inflation. And we are well hedged against interest rate volatility with less than 5% of our debt portfolio exposed to floating rates.

簡單談一下基礎業務，我們的財務指引非常順利。事實上，我們的基礎業務每股 EBITDA 和 DCF 成長了 8%，債務與 EBITDA 比率為 4.6 倍。根據這兩種觀點，我們的財務季度創歷史新高，我們期待保持這一勢頭。我們業界領先的業務風險支持我們長期持有的 4.5 至 5 倍槓桿目標。安橋幾乎沒有商品價格風險，我們 98% 以上的收入來自服務成本或照付不議的合約資產，80% 的 EBITDA 來自通膨保護的資產。我們能夠很好地對沖利率波動，我們的債務投資組合中只有不到 5% 面臨浮動利率風險。

Now let's take a look at the notable highlights I mentioned earlier from each of our businesses, starting with Liquids. Liquids Pipelines delivered high utilization levels once again. The Mainline transported over 3.1 million barrels per day during the first quarter, and we continue to expect average throughput of 3 million barrels per day for the year. As I mentioned earlier, the Canadian Energy Regulator approved the Mainline Tolling Settlement, which we view as a win-win-win for Enbridge, our customers and the industry.

現在讓我們來看看我之前提到的我們每項業務的顯著亮點，從液體開始。液體管道再次實現高利用率。第一季主線每天運輸超過 310 萬桶，我們繼續預計全年平均吞吐量為 300 萬桶。正如我之前提到的，加拿大能源監管機構批准了乾線收費結算，我們認為這對安橋、我們的客戶和產業來說是三贏的。

Switching gears to the U.S. Gulf Coast, we acquired 2 strategic docks and nearby land adjacent to Ingleside for USD 200 million. This acquisition will optimize existing operations in the area by increasing VLCC docking windows at Ingleside and will help set the stage for Ingleside to realize its ultimate potential as the industry-leading multiproduct export terminal in North America.

轉向美國墨西哥灣沿岸，我們以 2 億美元收購了 2 個戰略碼頭和毗鄰 Ingleside 的附近土地。此次收購將透過增加 Ingleside 的 VLCC 停靠窗口來優化該地區的現有運營，並將幫助 Ingleside 發揮其作為北美行業領先的多產品出口碼頭的最終潛力奠定基礎。

In the Permian, we've launched our open season to expand Gray Oak capacity by up to 120,000 barrels per day, pending a successful open season. Recently, we finished constructing 4 new storage tanks at Ingleside, bringing total storage capacity to 18 million barrels there. And we've already sanctioned an additional 5 tanks to add another 2.5 million barrels of storage capacity by 2025.

在二疊紀，我們已經啟動了開放季節，將灰橡木產能擴大至每天 12 萬桶，等待開放季節的成功。最近，我們在 Ingleside 完成了 4 個新儲罐的建設，使那裡的總儲存能力達到 1800 萬桶。我們已經批准增加 5 個儲罐，以便到 2025 年再增加 250 萬桶的儲存能力。

Now let's take a deeper look at Gas Transmission. In Canada, Woodfibre is progressing well, and we expect to reach the 60% engineering milestone in the second half of 2024. In the United States, we announced the formation of the Enbridge-Whitewater-MPLX joint venture. This transaction will be immediately accretive to DCF per share and our balance sheet metrics and allows us to establish a natural gas footprint in the Permian Basin. The Tennessee Ridgeline Expansion project has progressed to full FID. This is the natural gas pipeline, we announced a few years back that will deliver gas to the Tennessee Valley Authority's new natural gas combined-cycle plant, an emission-friendly replacement of their existing coal-fired power plant. Construction will begin in 2025 with an expected in-service date of Q4 2026. We also sanctioned the construction of offshore pipelines to service Shell and Equinor's U.S. Gulf Coast operations.

現在讓我們更深入地了解氣體傳輸。在加拿大，Woodfibre 進展順利，我們預計將在 2024 年下半年達到 60% 的工程里程碑。這項交易將立即增加每股 DCF 和我們的資產負債表指標，並使我們能夠在二疊紀盆地建立天然氣足跡。田納西州山脊線擴建工程已進入全面最終投資決定。這就是我們幾年前宣布的天然氣管道，它將向田納西河谷管理局的新天然氣聯合循環工廠輸送天然氣，該工廠是現有燃煤發電廠的排放友善替代品。施工將於 2025 年開始，預計投入使用日期為 2026 年第四季。

Now before I discuss our strategic joint venture in more detail, let me take a moment to comment on the topic to (inaudible). In addition to the growing demand for natural gas to feed LNG terminals, the build-out of data centers and generative AI is forecasted to require a material increase in power generation. This new power generation will be fed by a combination of natural gas and renewables and supports our view that the world needs all forms of energy.

現在，在我更詳細地討論我們的策略合資企業之前，讓我花點時間對這個主題發表評論（聽不清楚）。除了液化天然氣接收站對天然氣的需求不斷增長之外，預計資料中心和生成型人工智慧的建設也將需要大幅增加發電量。這種新的發電方式將由天然氣和再生能源結合供電，並支持我們的觀點，即世界需要各種形式的能源。

As the sector evolves, Enbridge is well positioned to serve this increased demand through the vast footprint of our assets connected to key supply basins. And with Enbridge's asset base, we can offer customers access to permanent power by fueling natural gas generation and renewable power. It's a competitive advantage that we have to offer jurisdictions throughout North America. We expect this trend of serving data centers will take some time to ramp up but are ready to serve our customers and their energy needs through our integrated infrastructure network.

隨著該行業的發展，安橋已做好充分準備，透過與主要供應盆地相連的龐大資產來滿足不斷增長的需求。憑藉安橋的資產基礎，我們可以透過天然氣發電和再生能源為客戶提供永久電力。這是我們必須為整個北美司法管轄區提供的競爭優勢。我們預計這種為資料中心提供服務的趨勢需要一段時間才能增強，但我們已準備好透過我們的整合基礎設施網路來滿足我們的客戶及其能源需求。

Now let's take a deeper dive into our Whitewater joint venture. On March 26, we announced the formation of the Whistler Pipeline JV, which will -- only gas pipeline and storage network connecting the Permian Basin to the growing U.S. Gulf Coast demand. This transaction further extends our access to the U.S. Gulf Coast LNG terminals, adding a connection to Cheniere's Corpus Christi terminal. There are 4 assets within the JV, the Whistler Pipeline and the Waha natural gas storage which are currently in operation, the ADCC pipeline, which is expected to come into service in Q3 and the Rio Bravo pipeline, which will enter service in 2026.

現在讓我們更深入地了解我們的白水合資企業。 3 月 26 日，我們宣布成立惠斯勒管道合資企業，該合資企業將僅將天然氣管道和儲存網路連接到二疊紀盆地與美國墨西哥灣沿岸日益增長的需求。這項交易進一步擴大了我們進入美國墨西哥灣沿岸液化天然氣接收站的範圍，增加了與切尼爾科珀斯克里斯蒂接收站的連接。合資企業內有4項資產，目前正在營運的惠斯勒管線和瓦哈天然氣儲存庫、預計第三季投入使用的ADCC管線和將於2026年投入使用的Rio Bravo管線。

The portfolio of assets is highly contracted in fact by predominantly investment-grade counterparties, which aligns perfectly with our low-risk commercial model. Beyond that, the system has embedded future growth opportunities, which will support growing LNG export volumes. This new JV is a strategic move into a prime gas supply basin, bringing together 3 key Texas midstream partners in an extremely attractive and financially beneficial manner. So now let's take a closer look at Gas Distribution and Storage.

事實上，資產組合主要由投資等級交易對手高度收縮，這與我們的低風險商業模式完美契合。除此之外，該系統還蘊藏著未來的成長機會，這將支援不斷增長的液化天然氣出口量。這家新合資企業是進軍主要天然氣供應盆地的一項戰略舉措，以極具吸引力和經濟效益的方式將德州的 3 個主要中游合作夥伴聚集在一起。現在讓我們仔細看看天然氣分配和儲存。

As I mentioned earlier, we closed the Enbridge Gas Ohio acquisition on March 6, and we are making great progress on the remaining U.S. gas utilities acquisitions. The integration teams are working hard, and we look forward to continuing to deliver safe, reliable and affordable natural gas to millions of residents and businesses. The Ohio gas utility serves 1.2 million customers and includes rate structures that decouple revenue from volumes, reducing earnings seasonality.

正如我之前提到的，我們於 3 月 6 日完成了對 Enbridge Gas Ohio 的收購，並且我們在剩餘的美國天然氣公用事業收購方面正在取得重大進展。整合團隊正在努力工作，我們期待繼續為數百萬居民和企業提供安全、可靠和負擔得起的天然氣。這家俄亥俄州天然氣公用事業公司為 120 萬客戶提供服務，其費率結構將收入與銷售量脫鉤，減少了利潤季節性。

In addition, over 80% of the capital is subject to recovery riders which allows Enbridge Gas Ohio to recover on that capital in a matter of months rather than years. We continue to work collaboratively with Questar and PSNC's regulatory bodies and expect to close those acquisitions later this year.

此外，超過 80% 的資本都受到回收附加條款的約束，這使得俄亥俄州安橋天然氣公司能夠在幾個月而不是幾年的時間內收回該資本。我們將繼續與 Questar 和 PSNC 的監管機構合作，並預計在今年稍後完成這些收購。

Turning to our Canadian gas utility. We filed a court appeal and submitted a motion with the OEB to review their December rate rebasing decision for EGI. The court appeal has been placed in abeyance until the OEB review is complete, which we expect could be during the third or fourth quarter of this year.

轉向我們的加拿大天然氣公司。我們向法院提起上訴，並向 OEB 提交了一項動議，要求審查其 12 月 EGI 利率重新調整的決定。法院上訴已暫停，直至 OEB 審查完成，我們預計可能會在今年第三或第四季完成。

The province of Ontario is enacting the Keep Energy Cost Down Act and we're encouraged that the government of Ontario is taking positive steps to preserve customer choice and affordability. In the meantime, we'll continue to focus on delivering safe and reliable energy to our growing customer base in Ontario and the second phase of the rebasing proceedings. On the operations side, our Dawn Hub continues to serve nearby markets with about 290 Bcf of networking storage capacity, roughly 1/3 of which is nonregulated and available to benefit from improved storage rates.

安大略省正在頒布《降低能源成本法案》，我們對安大略省政府正在採取積極措施來保留客戶的選擇和負擔能力感到鼓舞。同時，我們將繼續專注於為安大略省不斷增長的客戶群和基準調整程序的第二階段提供安全可靠的能源。在營運方面，我們的 Dawn Hub 繼續以約 290 Bcf 的網路儲存容量為附近市場提供服務，其中約 1/3 不受監管，可從提高的儲存速率中受益。

Let's jump into the Renewables section. As mentioned at Investor Day, we like offshore wind in France because of the solid risk-adjusted returns, strong partnerships and long-term government-backed offtake agreements. This focal point is exhibited through the 3 French projects we have coming into service shortly with Fécamp, PGL and Calvados. At Fécamp, all 71 turbines have been installed and the wind farm has begun generating electricity, powering the equivalent of more than 400,000 homes. At Provence Grand Large, all turbines and the floaters have been installed.

讓我們進入再生能源部分。正如在投資者日所提到的，我們喜歡法國的離岸風電，因為其可靠的風險調整回報、強大的合作夥伴關係以及政府支持的長期承購協議。這一焦點透過我們不久前與 Fécamp、PGL 和 Calvados 合作的 3 個法國項目得到體現。在費坎普，所有 71 台渦輪機均已安裝完畢，風電場已開始發電，為超過 40 萬戶家庭供電。 Provence Grand Large 的所有渦輪機和浮標都已安裝完畢。

Now let's pivot to our ESG progress outlined in our 2023 Sustainability Report. Today, we published that 23rd Annual Sustainability Report, and I'm pleased to report great progress towards our environmental, social and governance goals. Since 2018, we've reduced our GHG emissions intensity by 37%. And we're well on our way to net-zero emissions by 2050, having reduced our absolute emissions by 20% and our methane emissions by 40% since 2018.

現在讓我們專注於 2023 年永續發展報告中概述的 ESG 進展。今天，我們發布了第 23 份年度永續發展報告，我很高興地報告我們在實現環境、社會和治理目標方面取得的巨大進展。自 2018 年以來，我們已將溫室氣體排放強度降低了 37%。自 2018 年以來，我們的絕對排放量減少了 20%，甲烷排放量減少了 40%，我們正朝著 2050 年淨零排放的目標邁進。

On diversity, we've already met and exceeded our Board targets and have increased our workforce representation in all measurable areas since this time last year.

在多元化方面，我們已經達到並超越了董事會目標，自去年此時以來，我們在所有可衡量領域的員工代表性有所增加。

Safety remains our highest priority, of course, and we continue to drive industry-leading standards and achieved a 10% improvement over our previous 3-year average total recordable incident rate. Sustainability is core to Enbridge, and we're committed to meeting the needs of our customers, investors and society as we continue to provide energy in a planet-friendly way everywhere people need it.

當然，安全仍然是我們的首要任務，我們繼續推動行業領先的標準，並比之前 3 年的平均總可記錄事故率降低了 10%。永續發展是安橋的核心，我們致力於滿足客戶、投資者和社會的需求，並繼續以對地球友善的方式為人們需要的地方提供能源。

So now let me turn things over to Pat to walk you through our quarterly financial results, our capital allocation priorities and our growth outlook.

現在讓我把事情交給帕特，讓您了解我們的季度財務表現、我們的資本配置優先事項和我們的成長前景。

Thanks, Greg, and good morning, everyone. We're off to a great start in 2024. It's been another strong quarter operationally, and I'm proud of the teams for successfully closing the acquisition of the Enbridge Gas Ohio on March 6. Utilization was high across all franchises, showcasing continued demand for assets. I'm going to speak primarily about the actual results to date. We've also broken out what we refer to as our base business results, which exclude the contribution from, and the related financings of the U.S. gas utilities and we'll continue to report our base business results for comparison against financial guidance. In the supplementary materials posted on our website, we provided a reconciliation between the 2 for transparency purposes.

謝謝格雷格，大家早安。我們在2024 年有了一個良好的開端。很高，顯示持續的需求對於資產。我將主要談論迄今為止的實際結果。我們還列出了我們所說的基本業務業績，其中不包括美國天然氣公用事業公司的貢獻和相關融資，我們將繼續報告我們的基本業務業績，以便與財務指導進行比較。在我們網站上發布的補充資料中，出於透明度目的，我們提供了兩者之間的調節。

Now on to the results of the business. Year-over-year, first quarter adjusted EBITDA is up 11% and DCF per share of 4%, inclusive of share issued last September to fund the U.S. gas utilities. In Liquids, continued demand for our full-pass system drove strong results particularly on the Mainline and our Mid-Continent and Gulf Coast assets, specifically Flanagan South line and the Ingleside export facility.

現在談談業務結果。與去年同期相比，第一季調整後的 EBITDA 成長了 11%，每股 DCF 成長了 4%，其中包括去年 9 月發行的為美國天然氣公用事業公司提供資金的股票。在液體方面，對我們的全通系統的持續需求推動了強勁的業績，特別是在主線以及我們的中大陸和墨西哥灣沿岸資產上，特別是弗拉納根南線和 Ingleside 出口設施。

Gas Transmission had another quarter of high utilization and favorable recontracting on storage and transmission assets as well as benefiting from the acquisition of our gas storage facilities at Tres Palacios and Aitken Creek and the new Morrow RNG portfolio. Despite significantly warmer weather in Ontario, which impacted first quarter results by almost $80 million, EGI's results were consistent year-over-year as the Canadian utility benefited from higher rates and increased customer base. Enbridge Gas Ohio, as I noted, closed at the beginning of March and contributed about $50 million of EBITDA in the 24 days of ownership. The Renewables business benefited from increased OEC and Albatros ownership, compounded by strong international wind resources on those same assets as well as contributions from our investments in Fox Squirrel as a result of the generation of investment tax credits.

Gas Transmission 又一個季度實現了高利用率和有利的儲存和傳輸資產再承包，並受益於收購 Tres Palacios 和 Aitken Creek 的天然氣儲存設施以及新的 Morrow RNG 產品組合。儘管安大略省天氣顯著變暖，對第一季業績造成近8000 萬美元的影響，但EGI 的業績與去年同期相比保持一致，因為這家加拿大公用事業公司受益於更高的費率和增加的客戶群。正如我所指出的，安橋天然氣俄亥俄公司於 3 月初關閉，在所有權的 24 天內貢獻了約 5000 萬美元的 EBITDA。再生能源業務受益於 OEC 和 Albatros 所有權的增加，再加上這些資產上強大的國際風能資源以及我們對 Fox Squirrel 的投資因產生投資稅收抵免而做出的貢獻。

As a reminder, our Energy Services segment is now embedded into the business units, so you will not see it as a stand-alone segment anymore. This change has no impact on our segmented 2024 financial guidance. Eliminations and others up in 2024, owing to the higher investment income and lower operating administrative costs within the quarter. Below the line in DCF per share, higher EBITDA was partially offset by higher interest rates, impacting both floating rate and new debt. And finally, the additional share count from the equity issuance in September of last year also impacted our per share measures.

提醒一下，我們的能源服務部門現已嵌入到業務部門中，因此您將不再將其視為獨立的部門。這項變更對我們的 2024 年細分財務指引沒有影響。由於本季投資收入增加和營運管理成本降低，2024 年的消除和其他費用將增加。在每股 DCF 線以下，較高的 EBITDA 被較高的利率部分抵消，從而影響了浮動利率和新債務。最後，去年 9 月股票發行帶來的額外股份數量也影響了我們的每股指標。

Today, we're also reaffirming base business financial guidance, and we expect to be well within the range. If we are able to close the Utah acquisition within the second quarter as we expect, we'll look to update the full year guidance inclusive of the utility acquisitions on our Q2 call. Before I move on, I want to remind the investment community that our results have implicit seasonality. The first and fourth quarters are typically our strongest financial quarters. Gas consumption at the Ontario utility and gas transmission on our gas pipelines increases during colder months, while refinery turnarounds typically take place in the spring and summer, which means our liquid deliveries are lower during these periods.

今天，我們也重申了基本業務財務指導，我們預計將完全在該範圍內。如果我們能夠按照預期在第二季內完成對猶他州的收購，我們將在第二季電話會議上更新全年指引，包括公用事業收購。在繼續之前，我想提醒投資界，我們的結果有隱含的季節性。第一季和第四季通常是我們最強勁的財務季度。在寒冷的月份，安大略公用事業公司的天然氣消耗量和天然氣管道的天然氣輸送量會增加，而煉油廠的檢修通常發生在春季和夏季，這意味著我們在這些時期的液體輸送量較低。

With that, let's turn to our growth drivers. This slide drives a bit deeper into our secured capital program and optimization opportunities, providing visibility to [4% to 5%] of our overall medium-term growth outlook. As mentioned, our secured growth program now sits at $25 billion. The backlog is heavily weighted towards our Gas Transmission and Utility business and the diversity of projects, both in terms of scope and geography reduces our exposure to inflation or regulatory risk. Also worth pointing out is that our share of capital in Rio Bravo has been reduced in line with our lower interest in the pipeline, as outlined in our joint venture press release in March.

說到這裡，讓我們轉向我們的成長動力。這張投影片更深入地介紹了我們的安全資本計畫和優化機會，為我們的整體中期成長前景提供了 [4% 至 5%] 的可見性。如前所述，我們的安全成長計畫目前規模為 250 億美元。積壓的訂單主要集中在我們的天然氣輸送和公用事業業務上，而且專案的多樣性在範圍和地理位置方面都減少了我們面臨的通貨膨脹或監管風險。另外值得指出的是，正如我們在 3 月的合資企業新聞稿中所概述的那樣，我們在 Rio Bravo 的資本份額已經減少，與我們對該管道的興趣降低一致。

On cost savings, we continue to evaluate opportunities to reduce overhead, improve productivity and incorporate inflation protection into our commercial agreements on an ongoing basis. Asset optimization, cost management and contract negotiations have historically generated 1% to 2% of annual growth for Enbridge and will remain important drivers of our business going forward.

在節省成本方面，我們繼續評估減少管理費用、提高生產力以及持續將通膨保護納入我們的商業協議的機會。資產優化、成本管理和合約談判歷來為 Enbridge 帶來了 1% 至 2% 的年增長率，並將繼續成為我們業務發展的重要驅動力。

Lastly, I'll touch on our capital allocation priorities that we spoke about at Enbridge Day. With the remaining LDC closes in sight, I'd like to reiterate our continued commitment to balance sheet strength and sustainable capital returns. Our leverage guardrails of 4.5x to 5x debt to EBITDA remain in place and are supported by our industry-leading low-risk business model. The sale of our interest in Alliance, Aux Sable reinforces the balance sheet and ensures continued financial flexibility ahead of the Questar and PSNC closings this year.

最後，我將談談我們在安橋日談到的資本配置優先事項。隨著剩餘的最不發達國家關閉在即，我想重申我們對資產負債表實力和可持續資本回報的持續承諾。我們的債務與 EBITDA 比率為 4.5 倍至 5 倍的槓桿護欄仍然存在，並得到我們行業領先的低風險業務模式的支持。出售我們在 Alliance、Aux Sable 的權益增強了資產負債表，並確保在今年 Questar 和 PSNC 關閉之前保持持續的財務靈活性。

As I reiterated last quarter and emphasized at Enbridge Day, our focus remains grounded in capital prudency. Our value proposition has always been underpinned by a ratable growing dividend. We've distributed $34 billion to our shareholders over the past 5 years alone, and looking ahead, we expect that figure to grow to roughly $40 billion over the next 5 years, while maintaining our 60% to 70% DCF payout range. We're able to achieve that thanks to the visibility and duration of our multiyear growth outlook. We plan to spend $6 billion to $7 billion per year on our secured growth program. And while we have additional capacity, we don't need to spend it to achieve our growth targets.

正如我在上個季度重申並在安橋日強調的那樣，我們的重點仍然是資本審慎。我們的價值主張始終以不斷成長的股利為基礎。僅在過去5 年裡，我們就向股東分配了340 億美元，展望未來，我們預計這一數字將在未來5 年內增長到約400 億美元，同時維持60% 至70% 的現金流量折現支付範圍。由於我們多年成長前景的可見性和持續時間，我們能夠實現這一目標。我們計劃每年在安全成長計畫上花費 60 億至 70 億美元。雖然我們有額外的產能，但我們不需要花費它來實現我們的成長目標。

With that, I'll pass it back to Greg to wrap things up.

這樣，我會將其傳回給格雷格以完成所有工作。

Well, thanks very much, Pat. That's a really nice summary of a very successful first quarter to start the year and of the great progress we've made across all of our businesses.

嗯，非常感謝，帕特。這是對今年第一季非常成功的總結，也是對我們所有業務的巨大進步的一個非常好的總結。

The decisions we're making today are setting the stage for Enbridge to continue growing our dividend and sustainably returning capital to our shareholders for years to come. Over the last 20 years, we've generated an industry-leading average TSR CAGR of 12% through a balance of capital appreciation and dividend growth. Our value drivers are unchanged, unrivaled and quite unique in the midstream sector.

我們今天做出的決定為安橋在未來幾年繼續增加股息並可持續地向股東返還資本奠定了基礎。過去 20 年來，我們透過資本增值和股息成長的平衡，實現了 12% 的行業領先的平均股東總回報複合年增長率。我們的價值驅動因素沒有改變，在中游領域無與倫比且獨一無二。

We have diversified utility-like cash flows and a strong balance sheet that has supported 29 years of dividend increases, and we maintain an attractive risk-adjusted growth outlook. We benefit from lower carbon optionality throughout our conventional business, which will support affordable and responsibly paced global energy transition. Our strong value fundamentals are expected to continue delivering attractive shareholder returns, making Enbridge your first-choice investment opportunity.

我們擁有類似於公用事業的多元化現金流和強大的資產負債表，支持了 29 年的股息成長，並且我們保持著有吸引力的風險調整成長前景。我們受益於整個傳統業務的低碳選擇，這將支持負擔得起且負責任的全球能源轉型。我們強大的價值基本面預計將繼續為股東帶來有吸引力的回報，使安橋成為您的首選投資機會。

Thank you all, and now let's open the line for questions.

謝謝大家，現在讓我們開始提問。

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Robert Catellier from CIBC.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自 CIBC 的 Robert Catellier。

I wondered if you could give us your updated view on financial markets and asset sale markets. And how you're weighing capital recycling versus other options for funding utility acquisitions, notably the ATM.

我想知道您是否可以向我們介紹您對金融市場和資產銷售市場的最新看法。以及您如何權衡資本回收與其他為公用事業收購提供資金的選擇，尤其是 ATM。

Yes, Robert, maybe I'll start and maybe Pat will want to add here. Look, I think you've seen lots of asset sales. People have adjusted to higher interest rates. And you can see, what I would argue, a more robust market today for asset sales. And as you know, we've done well in excess of $10 billion in asset sales since 2018. So that's always on the table. I think what we want to make sure, and I think what we're doing is making sure that we've got maximum flexibility, maximum optionality and preparedness to complete the last 10% or so of the financing.

是的，羅伯特，也許我會開始，也許帕特會想在這裡補充。聽著，我想你已經看到了大量的資產出售。人們已經適應了更高的利率。我認為，你可以看到如今的資產銷售市場更加強勁。如你所知，自 2018 年以來，我們的資產銷售業績已超過 100 億美元。我認為我們想要確保的，而且我認為我們正在做的就是確保我們擁有最大的靈活性、最大的選擇性和準備完成最後 10% 左右的融資。

So no decisions have been made, but obviously, everything on the table. And we think that probably gives us the best opportunity given the markets, given we're not exactly sure when the transactions are going to close. So all that being said, highly confident we'll get that all closed. In fact, I guess if you had regulatory approval today, you could actually just close them all right now, too. So I think we're set up with everything still on the table, maximum flexibility and that's going to create the best opportunity to maximize value.

因此尚未做出任何決定，但顯然一切都已擺在桌面上。我們認為，鑑於我們不確定交易何時結束，這可能為我們提供了市場上最好的機會。話雖如此，我們非常有信心完成這一切。事實上，我想如果你今天獲得了監管部門的批准，你實際上也可以立即關閉它們。所以我認為我們已經做好了一切準備，最大的靈活性，這將創造價值最大化的最佳機會。

Okay. My next question, just wondering if you could update us on how the U.S. Gulf Coast crude oil export market is evolving. Specifically in the short-to-medium term here, we have a number of impacts, refinery maintenance in Europe, less Mexican exports and the indirect impacts from the startup of TMX?

好的。我的下一個問題，只是想知道您能否向我們介紹美國墨西哥灣沿岸原油出口市場的最新發展。具體來說，在中短期內，我們會受到許多影響，歐洲煉油廠維護、墨西哥出口減少以及 TMX 啟動的間接影響？

Yes. Sure, Robert. Colin here. So yes, it sounds like you're on top of it. It's still pretty robust. Certainly, the light-export market is on. You can see that Permian supply is up, and we're seeing strong throughputs off the dock. And likewise, on the heavy-export market or even just maybe even further upstream a little bit, just heavy into the U.S. Gulf market itself is still robust.

是的。當然，羅伯特。科林在這裡。所以是的，聽起來你已經掌握了一切。它仍然相當堅固。當然，輕量出口市場已經開啟。您可以看到二疊紀的供應量增加，而且我們看到碼頭的吞吐量強勁。同樣，在重型出口市場，甚至可能更上游一點，僅重型進入美國海灣市場本身仍然強勁。

Like you said, we're seeing Mexican oil staying home and it is creating more room for the Canadian heavy barrel, which were a strategy we've worked on for a long time, and we're going to bring on EHOT here soon to help our plumbing in that area. So we're watching that closely. It sounds like you are too, it remains pretty robust.

正如您所說，我們看到墨西哥石油留在國內，這為加拿大重型石油創造了更多空間，這是我們長期以來一直在研究的策略，我們很快就會在這裡推出 EHOT幫助我們在該地區的管道工程。所以我們正在密切關注這一點。聽起來你也是，它仍然相當強大。

Your next question comes from the line of Rob Hope from Scotiabank.

您的下一個問題來自豐業銀行的 Rob Hope。

Wanted to follow up on the commentary in the prepared remarks on increasing gas demand related to data centers. How large of an opportunity would this be for your gas pipeline systems and specifically, kind of when do you think you could start to see some expansions being required?

希望跟進準備好的有關數據中心相關天然氣需求增加的評論中的評論。這對您的天然氣管道系統來說有多大的機會，具體來說，您認為您什麼時候可以開始需要進行一些擴建？

Sure. Well, and I'll turn it over to Cynthia. I guess, lots of numbers out there for sure, Robert. And lots of predictions. I think it's early to be quite honest. But in any event, it's going to be positive from a power and gas demand perspective. So whether it's on the power side, 0.5% to 1.5% increase through 2030 or I've seen numbers from 5 Bcf up to 16 Bcf. I think we're well situated. It's not just the pipelines, but I'll turn it over to Cynthia. Maybe we'll ask Michele and Matthew to make a comment, too.

當然。好吧，我會把它交給辛西亞。我想，肯定有很多數字，羅伯特。還有很多預測。說實話，我認為現在還為時過早。但無論如何，從電力和天然氣需求的角度來看，這將是正面的。因此，無論是在電力方面，到 2030 年都會增加 0.5% 到 1.5%，或者我看到的數字從 5 Bcf 到 16 Bcf。我認為我們的位置很好。這不僅僅是管道問題，我會把它交給辛西婭。也許我們也會請米歇爾和馬修發表評論。

Yes. Thanks. Rob, we are excited by this opportunity, obviously, to help build out the supporting infrastructure for the natural gas generation to support AI data centers. Our GTM assets are really well located. We're within 50 miles of 45% of all the natural gas power generation in North America. So we are going to be in a position to build that out.

是的。謝謝。 Rob，顯然，我們對這個機會感到很興奮，可以幫助建立天然氣發電的支援基礎設施，以支援人工智慧資料中心。我們的 GTM 資產地理位置優越。我們距離北美 45% 的天然氣發電廠不到 50 英里。因此，我們將能夠實現這一目標。

As you look to timeline, just like Greg said, there'll be some opportunities in the near term, just depending on what your capacity and availability is and location. And so we look forward to that. And in the longer term, it seems to be really positive. Michele?

當你考慮時間表時，就像格雷格說的那樣，短期內會有一些機會，這取決於你的能力、可用性和位置。所以我們對此充滿期待。從長遠來看，這似乎是非常積極的。米歇爾？

Sure. Rob, what we're finding as we're speaking to customers about data centers is they're typically looking for reliable and affordable electricity in locally supportive jurisdictions. So the jurisdictions we currently -- are certainly the ones we will operate in, whether that's Utah, North Carolina or Ohio, they offer that really very much hand-in-hand with gas-fired generation. So to the degree that there is data growth in those regions, we certainly expect there will be data growth -- center growth in those regions will certainly play a role.

當然。羅布，當我們與客戶談論資料中心時，我們發現他們通常在當地支持的司法管轄區尋找可靠且負擔得起的電力。因此，我們目前的司法管轄區肯定是我們將要營運的司法管轄區，無論是猶他州、北卡羅來納州還是俄亥俄州，它們都與燃氣發電密切相關。因此，就這些地區的數據成長程度而言，我們當然預期數據也會成長——這些地區的中心成長肯定會發揮作用。

It's Matthew. Just quickly on Renewables, demand for Renewables is already very strong. And I think the data center stuff just enhances that. Large tech companies are really our kind of customers. And I think we're their kind of developer, we've got a reliable offering, we can deliver. We've got interconnection agreements ready to go and the capabilities. So just adds another tailwind for our Renewable business.

是馬修。就再生能源而言，對再生能源的需求已經非常強勁。我認為資料中心的東西只是增強了這一點。大型科技公司確實是我們的客戶。我認為我們是他們類型的開發商，我們擁有可靠的產品，我們可以交付。我們已經準備好互連協定和能力。這為我們的再生能源業務增添了另一個推動力。

Yes. Good setup. And we didn't mention storage, but given people want to jump on stuff so obviously, as you know, we've got 600 Bs or so of storage across the continent, that's going to be powerful, too.

是的。好的設定。我們沒有提到存儲，但考慮到人們如此明顯地想要使用東西，如你所知，我們在整個大陸擁有 600 B 左右的存儲，這也將是強大的。

All right. And then maybe just switching over to the heavy and the crude oil system. Interestingly, we're talking about expansions as Trans Mountain is ramping up. But even still, it does seem like there's an increasing pull of heavy to the Gulf Coast. So how have discussions with shippers formed regarding kind of the next phase of expansions of heavy capacity out of Alberta? And what do you think the pacing or timing will be of your phased expansions on the Mainline?

好的。然後也許只是切換到重油和原油系統。有趣的是，我們正在談論跨山計畫的擴張。但即便如此，墨西哥灣沿岸的拉力似乎確實越來越大。那麼，與托運人就阿爾伯塔省下一階段的重型運力擴張進行的討論是如何形成的呢？您認為主線上分階段擴張的節奏或時間安排是什麼？

Sure. Robert, Colin. Yes. So indeed, now that we've got the multiyear tolling deal done. It's kind of cleared the way and the table for discussions with shippers. On the next series of things to do in the job jar, expanding the system or even just continuing to optimize the system, which we've been doing over and over again, are on the table right now. We're in discussions with shippers currently, and we've got some offerings in front of them that are relatively capital efficient, executable permitting-wise, with a view to keeping some open egress here through the whole piece so that prices are higher. So that's the objective.

當然。羅伯特、科林.是的。事實上，現在我們已經完成了多年的收費協議。這為與托運人的討論掃清了道路和談判桌。關於工作罐中要做的下一系列事情，擴展系統甚至只是繼續優化系統，我們已經一遍又一遍地做這些事情，現在已經擺在桌面上了。目前我們正在與托運人進行討論，我們已經向他們提供了一些相對資本效率較高、在許可情況下可執行的產品，以期在整個區域保持一些開放的出口，從而提高價格。這就是目標。

Timing wise, you're going to see optimizations continue from us serially here, month-to-month, quarter-to-quarter and then chunkier expansions in the 100,000 a day category in the next 2 years, which would pair up pretty well with, I think, the forecast we've been conveying around the system refilling within that period of time. So that's the current discussion and plan, which is consistent with what we've had for the last year or two.

從時間上看，您將看到我們繼續進行連續優化，逐月、逐季，然後在未來 2 年內在每天 100,000 人的類別中進行更大規模的擴張，這將與，我認為，我們一直在系統中傳達的預測會在那段時間內重新填入。這就是目前的討論和計劃，這與我們過去一兩年的情況是一致的。

Your next question comes from the line of Benjamin Pham from BMO.

您的下一個問題來自 BMO 的 Benjamin Pham。

On the recent -- Capital Power, they shelved their CCS project, how does that impact your -- in any way for your Wabamun project?

在最近的 Capital Power 節目中，他們擱置了 CCS 項目，這對您的 Wabamun 項目有何影響？

Ben, it's Colin. I can take that. Yes. So that's disappointing. And I think as Capital Power noted, the project is technically viable, but just economically unviable for a number of reasons, including governmental support for it. Notwithstanding, we've got a kind of a sister project at the Wabamun Hub with Heidelberg materials for their cement plant in Northwest Edmonton. So that project has garnered some more financial support, and we'll be working with them to consider FID later this year.

本，是科林。我可以接受。是的。所以很令人失望。我認為正如 Capital Power 所指出的，該項目在技術上是可行的，但由於多種原因（包括政府對其的支持）在經濟上不可行。儘管如此，我們在 Wabamun Hub 有一個姊妹項目，為埃德蒙頓西北部的水泥廠提供海德堡材料。因此，該項目已經獲得了更多的財務支持，我們將與他們合作，考慮今年稍後的最終投資決定。

So the Wabamun Open Access Hub will generally continue. We've incurred some very modest capital costs in preparing for Capital Power, but we have a reimbursement agreement with them. So it's recovered. So that's our update on that hub. But more broadly, we remain keenly interested in growing our carbon capture and transportation and sequester business. Across North America, we've got a couple of other projects under development, as you know, in the States, namely, Texas. So that's a broad update.

因此，Wabamun 開放取用中心通常會繼續下去。在準備 Capital Power 的過程中，我們花費了一些非常有限的資本成本，但我們與他們簽訂了報銷協議。於是就恢復了。這就是我們對中心的更新。但更廣泛地說，我們仍然對發展碳捕獲、運輸和封存業務非常感興趣。如您所知，在北美，我們還有幾個其他項目正在開發中，這些項目位於美國，即德克薩斯州。這是一次廣泛的更新。

Ben, it's an interesting one because I think it's a good example of even in some of these new technologies where there appears to be a lot of government support, they're going to be highly competitive, right? As Colin said, the Heidelberg project looks quite good. And then you're going to compare jurisdictions, we sure do. And I think Capital Power sounds like they are too and just the NPV of tax benefits in Canada versus the U.S. for CCUS. It's just more attractive to down South.

Ben，這是一個有趣的例子，因為我認為這是一個很好的例子，即使在一些似乎有很多政府支持的新技術中，它們也將具有很強的競爭力，對吧？正如科林所說，海德堡計畫看起來相當不錯。然後你會比較司法管轄區，我們當然會這樣做。我認為 Capital Power 聽起來也是如此，只是加拿大與美國 CCUS 稅收優惠的淨現值 (NPV)。南部地區更具吸引力。

So we're real careful how we deal with this. As Colin said, we've got reimbursement agreement there, but we're going to keep pursuing these. And I think, much like a lot of other things, there are probably fewer of these than more -- than obviously the proposals that are out there. We're going to do this really disciplined, and it sounds like they are as well.

所以我們在處理這個問題時非常小心。正如科林所說，我們已經達成了報銷協議，但我們將繼續追求這些協議。我認為，就像許多其他事情一樣，這些提案的數量可能少於現有的提案。我們將非常嚴格地做到這一點，聽起來他們也是如此。

Okay. And maybe on the Ingleside, just going back to that and the strong volumes, the windows that you're talking about, what do you think your expectation is in terms of capital deployment each year going forward? And maybe just an update on specific developments like solar generation, ammonia exports, anything that's been notable over the last quarter or two.

好的。也許在 Ingleside，回到你所說的強勁的交易量和窗口，你認為你對未來每年資本部署的期望是什麼？也許只是太陽能發電、氨出口等具體發展的最新情況，以及過去一、兩季值得注意的。

Sure, Ben. So yes, I mean we consider Ingleside as like kind of a Swiss army knife, multiproduct ambition. Currently, it's just crude. But over time, all the advantages that -- more crudes advantage off that dock are portable to other products, purity products, blue ammonia, which we're developing. So we've announced a couple of expansions at Ingleside now, right, just for storage, and we've got headroom there with both permitting for storage and docks. As you know, we acquired -- or announced, we have to close that yet later this year with the docks next door, which are going to basically double the windows, and we can immediately optimize the loading of smaller vessels at the neighboring docks and reserve our legacy docks for the VLCCs. And by the way, we've deepened our dock there to 54 feet now. So we can -- not fully load, but 1.6 million barrels a day of a 2 million-barrel at VLCC. So that's pretty efficient capital deployment.

當然，本。所以，是的，我的意思是我們認為 Ingleside 就像一把瑞士軍刀，多產品的野心。目前，它還很粗糙。但隨著時間的推移，所有的優勢——更多的原油優勢——從碼頭流出的原油——都可以轉移到我們正在開發的其​​他產品、純度產品、藍氨。因此，我們現在已經宣佈在 Ingleside 進行幾項擴建，對吧，只是為了存儲，而且我們在那裡有足夠的空間，可以用於存儲和碼頭。如你所知，我們收購了——或者宣布，我們必須在今年晚些時候關閉隔壁的碼頭，這基本上將使窗戶增加一倍，我們可以立即優化鄰近碼頭較小船隻的裝載，為VLCC 保留我們的舊碼頭。順便說一句，我們現在已將那裡的碼頭加深到 54 英尺。因此，我們可以——不是滿載，而是在 VLCC 上每天裝載 200 萬桶油中的 160 萬桶。所以這是相當有效的資本配置。

To your question over time, we'd like to copy-paste that model, if you like, to other products. We're still looking at the blue ammonia project with Yara. And the FID on that would be over a year away yet, but that would be a chunkier capital deployment. But the commercial models we're looking at would be utility-like and strong margins over a hurdle rate. So hopefully, that gets to your question.

對於您長期以來提出的問題，如果您願意，我們希望將該模型複製並貼上到其他產品中。我們仍在考慮與雅苒合作的藍氨計畫。雖然最終投資決定還需要一年以上的時間，但這將是一次更大規模的資本部署。但我們正在考慮的商業模式將是類似公用事業的，利潤率高於最低門檻。希望這能解答您的問題。

Your next question comes from the line of Theresa Chen from Barclays.

你的下一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的Theresa Chen。

First, on the Gas Transmission side. Related to the Whistler JV acquisition, just curious on how you think about optimizing or how this optimizes your portfolio over time? And related to the mention of organic growth opportunities on this. Clearly, we're seeing very tight Permian egress right now and the need for additional capacity out of Waha. Do you view additional expansion opportunities on Whistler likely? Or would you be willing to take part of another greenfield egress solution?

首先，在天然氣輸送方面。與惠斯勒合資企業收購相關，只是想知道您如何考慮優化，或者隨著時間的推移，這將如何優化您的投資組合？與此相關的是有機成長機會。顯然，我們現在看到二疊紀出口非常緊張，並且需要瓦哈額外的產能。您認為惠斯勒可能有更多擴張機會嗎？或者您願意參與另一個新建出口解決方案嗎？

Yes. Theresa, it's Cynthia. Thanks for that question. We're really excited about this opportunity with this joint venture. It is, as you mentioned, very strategic. Permian has an opportunity to grow to support all the activity in the U.S. Gulf Coast, including the LNG expansion in terminals there. We see right now, obviously, Rio Bravo with our contribution there will be a new build-out to support that LNG, so that will eventually have an opportunity to take incremental gas out of the Permian.

是的。特蕾莎，我是辛西亞。謝謝你提出這個問題。我們對與這家合資企業合作的機會感到非常興奮。正如您所提到的，這是非常具有戰略意義的。二疊紀有機會發展以支持美國墨西哥灣沿岸的所有活動，包括那裡的液化天然氣碼頭擴建。顯然，我們現在看到，Rio Bravo 在我們的貢獻下將有一個新的擴建項目來支持液化天然氣，因此最終將有機會從二疊紀開採增量天然氣。

Now there will be opportunities, both brownfield and greenfield. And so we'll continue to look at that. And we'll look at -- we think we'll be able to get attractive returns and help extend that footprint even more. But again, it will have to meet our threshold, and that's further out. But yes, it's a great opportunity for us to continue to build out and enhance what we believe is our super system already by having that incremental connectivity. And now, of course, with the Whistler JV we'll be tied to all of the existing LNG facilities because we get the connection to Cheniere's Corpus Christi LNG facility.

現在，無論是棕地還是綠地，都會有機會。所以我們將繼續關注這一點。我們會考慮——我們認為我們將能夠獲得有吸引力的回報，並幫助進一步擴大這一足跡。但同樣，它必須達到我們的門檻，而這還很遙遠。但是，是的，這對我們來說是一個很好的機會，可以透過增量連接來繼續建立和增強我們認為已經是我們的超級系統。當然，現在，有了惠斯勒合資企業，我們將與所有現有的液化天然氣設施聯繫起來，因為我們可以連接到切尼爾的科珀斯克里斯蒂液化天然氣設施。

Yes. I guess we also look at opportunities outside the JV as well as they come along, right? Areas like Port Arthur and stuff like that. So I think we're open to any, but I think it actually creates good optionality down into the Corpus area, et cetera, with the JV. And then we're continuing to look at other opportunities because frankly, we haven't been as deep into the Permian as some other players.

是的。我想我們也會關注合資企業以外的機會以及它們的出現，對吧？像亞瑟港之類的地區。因此，我認為我們對任何人都持開放態度，但我認為它實際上為語料庫領域等與合資企業創造了良好的選擇性。然後我們將繼續尋找其他機會，因為坦白說，我們還沒有像其他一些參與者那樣深入二疊紀盆地。

Yes. And we do have, as Greg noted, an open season right now from Permian to Port Arthur provider that's going to close on May 20, and we have a lot of interest. So it's a great opportunity to support the development there.

是的。正如格雷格所指出的那樣，我們現在確實有一個從二疊紀到亞瑟港供應商的開放季節，該季節將於 5 月 20 日結束，我們有很多興趣。因此，這是支持那裡發展的絕佳機會。

Got it. And then maybe turning back to the Liquids segment. I wanted to follow up on the line of questioning related to TMX ramping up and how everything is tracking within your internal budget. As we look to second quarter, right, so you have the line fill happening right now and then you have a seasonal producer maintenance upstream. Just quarter-over-quarter, given the strong earnings, not just on your Mainline system in the first quarter, but also Express-Platte and the systems South of Mainline. Would we expect to see some alleviation or a decrease in volumes from those systems, even as Mainline remains a portion just at a lower level. How should we think about the evolution of that for the year?

知道了。然後也許會回到液體部分。我想跟進有關 TMX 增加的問題以及一切如何在內部預算內進行追蹤的問題。當我們展望第二季度時，對吧，現在就發生了生產線填充，然後上游生產商進行了季節性維護。考慮到第一季的強勁收益，不僅是 Mainline 系統，而且 Express-Platte 和 Mainline 以南的系統也都實現了季度環比增長。我們是否會期望看到這些系統的交易量有所緩解或減少，即使主線仍處於較低水平。我們該如何看待這一年的演變？

Theresa, Colin. Yes, I guess, we normally reserve to late June to update you on volumes for Q2, but maybe a let's sneak a peek here. So line fill is complete, I think, on TMX, it's flowing. And from what we can tell, it looks like that was all line filled from inventory, elevated inventories anticipated going into it. So we've not really seen a blip on our system here through April or May. And likewise, our downstream pipes remain pretty robust.

特蕾莎、科林.是的，我想，我們通常會保留到 6 月下旬才向您更新第二季的銷量，但也許讓我們在這裡偷看一下。我想，在 TMX 上，線條填充已經完成，它正在流動。據我們所知，看起來所有生產線都是由庫存填充的，預計庫存會增加。因此，整個四月或五月我們的系統都沒有真正出現過問題。同樣，我們的下游管道仍然相當堅固。

So I think the thesis we've been offering here is unfolding like we thought it would. So I'll stop short of giving you a volume numbers, but that's a general trend.

所以我認為我們在這裡提供的論文正在像我們想像的那樣展開。因此，我不會向您提供成交量數字，但這是總體趨勢。

Your next question comes from the line of Linda Ezergailis from TD Cowen.

您的下一個問題來自 TD Cowen 的 Linda Ezergailis。

I'm wondering as we see economic demand increasing from data centers and onshoring of industrial demand et cetera and the supply response working as hard as it can to meet that. I'm wondering when you look out through your system and see any pinch points along the transportation value chain, how important is it for your customers, whether it be producers or end users like utilities or, in the future, data centers to have full-path solutions from you on the gas side, you don't have upstream gathering. So I'm wondering if that might be an extension of your value chain consideration as we see kind of more complexity in terms of these molecules traversing through the system.

我想知道，我們看到資料中心和工業需求的本土化等經濟需求不斷增加，而供應響應則竭盡全力滿足這項需求。我想知道，當您透過系統觀察並看到運輸價值鏈上的任何關鍵點時，它對您的客戶（無論是生產商還是公用事業等最終用戶，或者未來的資料中心）有多重要？您在天然氣方面提供路徑解決方案，您沒有上游聚集。所以我想知道這是否可能是您價值鏈考慮的延伸，因為我們看到這些穿過系統的分子更加複雜。

And then similarly, on the Liquids side, are your shippers sophisticated enough to navigate all the steps in the value chain? Or are you seeing increasingly demand and interest in bundled services full -- more full path?

同樣，在液體方面，您的托運人是否足夠成熟，能夠駕馭價值鏈中的所有步驟？或者您是否看到對完整的捆綁服務的需求和興趣日益增長——更完整的路徑？

Linda, maybe I'll start and then maybe Colin and Cynthia want to chime in too here. Look, I mean, we're seeing incredible utilization of the assets, right? So see -- take a place like British Columbia, like -- we've just seen unbelievable elements of peak days that have gone through there. We saw the West Coast South system, almost 600 Bs of gas in 2023, which is 6% more than a year ago. And 99 of our top 100 days on (inaudible) have occurred since November 22. So people are looking for that path. As you know, we're looking to develop that. They're also looking to storage. As you know, we've bought Aitken Creek. We're not in the gathering side in a big way now. But if we could do that in a way that's consistent with our low-risk model, that's something we would definitely look at.

琳達，也許我會開始，然後也許柯林和辛西亞也想在這裡插話。聽著，我的意思是，我們看到資產的利用率令人難以置信，對吧？所以看——以不列顛哥倫比亞省為例——我們剛剛看到了那裡經歷的高峰時期令人難以置信的元素。我們看到西海岸南部系統到 2023 年天然氣產量將接近 600 Bs，比一年前增加 6%。我們的前 100 天（聽不清楚）中有 99 天是自 11 月 22 日以來發生的。如您所知，我們正在尋求發展這一點。他們也在尋找儲存空間。如你所知，我們已經買下了艾特肯克里克。我們現在並沒有在很大程度上站在聚集一邊。但如果我們能夠以符合我們的低風險模型的方式做到這一點，那麼我們肯定會考慮這一點。

And then, yes, on the liquids side, I mean, not only are our customers plenty sophisticated to look at this. I think we're doing a great job with the customer team in Colin's Group of figuring out ways that we can bring innovative solutions to them full path, right? So -- and you see that with the number of our -- whether it's open seasons in the Gulf Coast or our efforts on Flanagan and et cetera, and obviously, the Mainline Tolling Agreement. So -- yes, I think on all fronts, we're -- we see they want a full path, and we see they want lots of optionality.

然後，是的，在液體方面，我的意思是，我們的客戶不僅非常成熟地看待這一點。我認為我們與 Colin 集團的客戶團隊一起做得很好，找到了為他們提供創新解決方案的完整路徑，對吧？所以——你可以看到我們的數量——無論是墨西哥灣沿岸的開放季節還是我們在弗拉納根等地的努力，顯然還有主線收費協議。所以——是的，我認為在所有方面，我們——我們看到他們想要一條完整的道路，我們看到他們想要很多選擇。

And I would even include the utilities now in that regard, too, and look at a place like Ohio, where we've got all those assets available, whether it's renewable, gas, liquids and you've got data center activity and stuff. So I think we've got the full suite of tools, and that's exactly what we're trying to be able to do to benefit them and ourselves and our investors, obviously. I don't know Cynthia or Colin?

我甚至現在也將這方面的公用事業包括在內，看看像俄亥俄州這樣的地方，我們擁有所有可用的資產，無論是再生能源、天然氣、液體，還是資料中心活動和其他東西。所以我認為我們已經擁有了一整套工具，這正是我們正在努力做的事情，以使他們、我們自己和我們的投資者受益，顯然。我不認識辛西亞或科林？

I would just -- I think, Linda, your observation is right. Value chains are getting longer, right? We can see that with TMX, we see that heavy down at the Gulf. So customers are sophisticated for sure, but there are -- that last-mile element that is in, let's call it, increasingly foreign territory where we can help navigate that with the facilities or integrated tools, think about something like EHOT or even something like the Seaway docks down in South Texas. Those are incrementally kind of new to the equation over the last couple of years.

我只是──我想，琳達，你的觀察是正確的。價值鏈變得越來越長，對嗎？我們可以透過 TMX 看到海灣地區的重壓。因此，客戶肯定是複雜的，但最後一英里的元素，我們可以稱之為，越來越陌生的領域，我們可以透過設施或整合工具幫助導航，考慮像 EHOT 甚至類似的東西航道停靠在德克薩斯州南部。在過去的幾年裡，這些對方程式來說逐漸變得陌生。

Yes. I would just reinforce the point that we're always looking to listen to what our customers want and having new customers come in on the AI data center space, we'll look at how we can evolve that. But they are very sophisticated, and there are other players in that space, marketers that can help build out that full value chain too. But our assets are in great locations, and we'll be well positioned to take advantage of that.

是的。我想強調的是，我們一直在傾聽客戶的需求，並讓新客戶進入人工智慧資料中心領域，我們將研究如何發展這一點。但他們非常複雜，而且該領域還有其他參與者、行銷人員也可以幫助建立完整的價值鏈。但我們的資產位置優越，我們將充分利用這一點。

Your next question comes from the line of Jeremy Tonet from JPMorgan.

您的下一個問題來自摩根大通的 Jeremy Tonet。

I just wanted to pick up on that last point, I guess, a bit more. Having closed the Ohio LDC acquisition, I'm just wondering if you could talk a bit more, I guess, on specific opportunities you see for growth in your footprint such as NEXUS running through the state, and it seems like there's some capacity to expand there and having the LDCs. Just wondering if you could walk us through that a bit more.

我想我只是想多談談最後一點。完成對俄亥俄州 LDC 的收購後，我想您是否可以多談談您所看到的足跡增長的具體機會，例如貫穿該州的 NEXUS，而且似乎有一些擴展的能力還有最不發達國家。只是想知道您是否可以再向我們介紹一下。

Sure. I mean we're certainly starting to take a look at it. It's been about 2 months. It's gone really well. And Ohio is very, very well served with its position in terms of having that access and availability to gas. We also have about 80 Bcf of storage just in Ohio and, of course, access to the Dawn Hub. So we think there's quite a few opportunities.

當然。我的意思是我們肯定開始考慮它。已經過去2個月左右了。一切都很順利。俄亥俄州在天然氣的取得和供應方面的地位非常非常好。我們在俄亥俄州還擁有約 80 Bcf 的儲存空間，當然也可以存取 Dawn Hub。所以我們認為有很多機會。

We're also looking for where we have similar customers. So for example, whether that's steel manufacturing that's using and converting to natural gas in order to reduce their emissions and that sort of things. So we think there are quite a few opportunities. And the team has been going in pretty deep to look for them.

我們也在尋找有類似客戶的地方。例如，鋼鐵製造是否使用天然氣並轉化為天然氣，以減少排放等。所以我們認為有很多機會。該團隊一直在深入尋找它們。

Remember, Jeremy, also that Ohio is interesting and that a lot of the growth there isn't so much about load, although -- we'll see how that goes and we believe in it. It's a lot about replacement too, which is structured in the rates and stuff. And as there's a lot of capital to go in that regard. So anything incremental on these commercial synergies we're talking, which we fully expect we'll be able to realize is -- was not something we had assumed in our acquisition assumptions. So all that will be upside.

傑里米，請記住，俄亥俄州很有趣，而且很多增長與負載無關，儘管如此，我們會看看情況如何，我們相信這一點。這也與更換有關，這是由費率和其他內容構成的。因為在這方面有很多資本可以投入。因此，我們正在談論的這些商業協同效應的任何增量，我們完全希望我們能夠實現，這並不是我們在收購假設中所假設的。所以這一切都會有好處。

Got it. That's very helpful. And as you start to close these LDC acquisitions, just wondering if you could talk a bit more, I guess, on how you think about your LDC portfolio. And if EGI doesn't deliver the mechanisms that are as attractive as maybe some of your other jurisdictions, I guess, the potential to wheel capital around to where you see the best opportunity?

知道了。這非常有幫助。當您開始完成這些最不發達國家的收購時，我想您是否可以多談談您對最不發達國家投資組合的看法。如果 EGI 不能提供像其他一些司法管轄區一樣有吸引力的機制，我想，是否有可能將資本轉移到您認為最佳機會的地方？

Yes, absolutely. I think it's exactly the same way now with multiple jurisdictions and geographies the same way, we look at Gas Transmission on the Renewables side and on the Liquids side. You -- we only -- you only have so much capital a; and b, we want to put that capital to work where it attracts the best returns. I am confident that, particularly with the support from the Ontario government and ensuring that consumers have choice that we'll have our opportunities in Ontario. But you're exactly right. Just given things like population growth and penetration in places like Utah and North Carolina, that's going to be highly competitive. And fortunately, we've got the resources and backing to be able to meet all those.

是的，一點沒錯。我認為現在多個司法管轄區和地區的情況完全相同，我們以​​同樣的方式看待再生能源方面和液體方面的天然氣傳輸。你——我們只有——你只有這麼多資本a； b，我們希望將這些資本投入到能帶來最佳回報的地方。我相信，特別是在安大略省政府的支持下，並確保消費者有選擇的情況下，我們將在安大略省擁有機會。但你是完全正確的。考慮到猶他州和北卡羅來納州等地的人口成長和滲透率，這將是極具競爭力的。幸運的是，我們擁有資源和支援來滿足所有這些要求。

So yes, that's exactly what we want to be able to do. And again, we see it on the Liquids side as well. We've redeployed a lot of capital into the Gulf Coast, where we weren't. And at the same time, now we've got egress opportunities, which I'm not sure many people were seeing 2 years ago. But once again, the good old Mainline in Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin is proving a robust area.

所以，是的，這正是我們想要做的。同樣，我們在液體方面也看到了這一點。我們已將大量資金重新部署到墨西哥灣沿岸，而我們原本沒有在那裡部署。同時，現在我們有了外出的機會，我不確定兩年前有多少人看到過這種情況。但加拿大西部沉積盆地的古老主線再次被證明是一個強大的地區。

And then yes, of course, on the Gas Transmission side, whether it's on the on the LNG side. A lot of our capital, I would say, has moved south in the last few years. Eventually, the Northeast is going to have to do something, and that will create opportunities, too. So -- and obviously, around the Great Lakes. I mean, it is the benefit of portfolio. Not all jurisdictions are going to be the most attractive at the time. But when you've got assets in 43 states and 8 provinces in 5 countries, you can make those capital allocation decisions with great discipline.

當然，在天然氣傳輸方面，無論是在液化天然氣方面。我想說，過去幾年我們的大部分首都已經南遷。最終，東北地區將不得不採取一些行動，這也將創造機會。所以——很明顯，是在五大湖周圍。我的意思是，這是投資組合的好處。並非所有司法管轄區都會在當時最具吸引力。但是，當您在 5 個國家的 43 個州和 8 個省份擁有資產時，您可以嚴格遵守這些資本配置決策。

Your next question comes from the line of Robert Kwan from RBC Capital Markets.

您的下一個問題來自加拿大皇家銀行資本市場 (RBC Capital Markets) 的羅伯特·關 (Robert Kwan)。

If I can just start on the Dominion funding side of things. And you made a comment that you expect to exit the deal funded well within the 4.5x to 5x. I'm just wondering if you can square that out. I think at the outset of the deal, you were targeting being at the midpoint or even in the lower half of the range and just in achieving whatever the target is now -- do you think you can do that within the levers that avoids the usage of the...

如果我能從自治領資金方面開始就好了。您發表評論稱，您預計退出交易的資金將在 4.5 倍到 5 倍之間。我只是想知道你能否解決這個問題。我認為在交易開始時，您的目標是處於範圍的中點甚至下半部分，並且只是為了實現現在的目標 - 您認為您可以在避免使用的槓桿範圍內做到這一點嗎的...

Well, I think, Robert, as Greg said, we'll look at all the levers that we have to complete what is really just about 10%, 15% of the overall funding for that acquisition. Really the goal behind getting some of that -- or a big chunk of that financing done early on in the process was allow us as much flexibility as we have to kind of do what we need to do throughout 2024 to close off the rest of the funding. So I think we're really comfortable that we can fund this in a way that maintains us well within that 4.5x to 5x. And that's how we'll move forward on the funding.

嗯，我想，羅伯特，正如格雷格所說，我們將研究我們必須使用的所有槓桿來完成該收購的總體資金的 10%、15% 左右。實際上，在這一過程的早期完成其中一部分融資（或者說大部分融資）背後的目標是讓我們擁有盡可能多的靈活性，因為我們必須在2024 年全年完成我們需要做的事情，以完成剩餘的融資。所以我認為我們真的很放心，我們可以以一種將我們維持在 4.5 倍到 5 倍範圍內的方式提供資金。這就是我們推進融資的方式。

Okay. As you -- also just things on -- I'll finish here on capital allocation and just your approach to thinking about your payout. When you look at your earnings profile and you've really focused more on DCF payout versus earnings payout. So just what are the accounting measures that differ sustainably over the long term versus your view of the true economics underlying your assets? And specifically, you've got about $1 billion of maintenance CapEx. How much of that is coming from your Gas Distribution segment?

好的。正如您所說的那樣，我將在這裡結束資本配置以及您考慮支付的方法。當您查看您的收益概況時，您實際上更專注於 DCF 支付而不是收益支付。那麼，與您對資產背後的真實經濟學的看法相比，從長遠來看，哪些會計指標會持續存在差異呢？具體來說，您有大約 10 億美元的維護資本支出。其中有多少來自您的天然氣配送部門？

So I think about half of the current maintenance capital is coming from the Distribution unit. It'll go up a bit as we acquire these 3 utilities in the U.S. as we go around. I think if you're asking kind of what the difference between EPS and DCF is, it really is that primarily that difference between depreciation and what we would call maintenance capital. But I think the important thing to know about with our assets, of course, is that if you maintain your assets appropriately like we believe we do, their life is almost non-ending. And so as a result, you can utilize these assets for a very long period of time.

因此，我認為目前維護資金的一半左右來自分銷部門。當我們在美國收購這 3 家公用事業公司時，價格會上漲一點。我認為，如果您問 EPS 和 DCF 之間的區別是什麼，那麼實際上主要是折舊和我們所說的維護資本之間的區別。但我認為，關於我們的資產，最重要的是，如果你像我們相信的那樣適當地維護你的資產，它們的生命幾乎是永無止境的。因此，您可以在很長一段時間內使用這些資產。

So when we look at our payout, what we're really looking at is that cash flow generation and how sustainable that is and therefore, make kind of dividend increase decisions based on it. That's why we've been guiding for a number of years now that we're going to grow that dividend in line with how we grow cash flow.

因此，當我們考慮派息時，我們真正關注的是現金流的產生及其可持續性，因此，根據它做出增加股利的決策。這就是為什麼我們多年來一直在指導我們將根據現金流的增長來增加股息。

So I think cash is king in our mind within this business. And so we make sure that, that's sustainable and then we make our dividend recommendations based on that. And our plan would be to continue to grow the dividend in line with cash flows.

所以我認為在這個行業我們心目中現金是王。因此，我們確保這是可持續的，然後我們據此提出股息建議。我們的計劃是繼續根據現金流增加股利。

Your next question from the line of Praneeth Satish from Wells Fargo.

您的下一個問題來自富國銀行的普拉尼思·薩蒂什 (Praneeth Satish)。

So as it relates to the funding for the LDC acquisition, you mentioned the levers that you have. But I mean it looks like Q1 was incrementally strong. So is there a scenario here where you generate more EBITDA than expected this year and therefore get to where you need to be from a leverage perspective and avoid having to sell more assets or ATM issuance? Or is it too early to think that? Just trying to think through the dynamics there.

由於這涉及到 LDC 收購的資金，您提到了您擁有的槓桿。但我的意思是，第一季看起來越來越強勁。那麼，是否存在一種情況，即您今年產生的 EBITDA 高於預期，從而從槓桿角度達到您需要的水平，並避免出售更多資產或 ATM 發行？還是現在這樣想還太早？只是想思考那裡的動態。

Yes, I think it's a little early. I think what we're really trying to do, Praneeth, is making sure we've got that maximum flexibility. Again, we haven't come to any conclusions where we're -- you're right, very strong quarter. As you know, we've got some seasonality in our year in the first quarter and the fourth quarter are always much stronger. I think what we'll do is, as Pat mentioned in his early commentary, I believe, that as we get the assets in the door here, and I expect you'll see this as we announce second quarter, give you a good outlook for the full economics of the transaction, if you will, and what the full year will look like on a fully loaded basis.

是的，我認為現在有點早。 Praneeth，我認為我們真正想做的是確保我們擁有最大的靈活性。再說一次，我們還沒有得出任何結論——你是對的，這個季度非常強勁。如您所知，我們今年第一季有一些季節性，而第四季總是要強得多。我認為我們要做的是，正如帕特在他早期的評論中提到的那樣，我相信，當我們在這裡獲得資產時，我希望您會在我們宣布第二季度時看到這一點，給您一個良好的前景如果您願意的話，可以了解交易的全部經濟情況，以及在滿負荷的情況下全年會是什麼樣子。

So I think that will give you a good view at this time. Yes, I mean, look, we came into the year stronger and finished stronger than we thought. We've started the first quarter stronger than a lot of people were looking for, and we felt we would have a strong start. And I believe we've been able to execute both on the funding to date and getting these assets in the house much quicker than we thought.

所以我想這會給你一個很好的視野。是的，我的意思是，看，我們這一年的表現比我們想像的更強大，結束時也比我們想像的更強大。我們第一季的開局比許多人預期的要好，我們覺得我們會有一個強勁的開局。我相信，迄今為止，我們已經能夠執行融資並以比我們想像的更快的速度獲得這些資產。

From an energy fundamentals perspective, I've mentioned some of the things going on in the gas side. I mean -- I think you got to give it to us that the LP team have been bang on their expectations of what would happen with volumes and stuff, and we're nailing those. So yes, optimistic start to the year, but we'll come back and talk to you in August exactly how the full year will look.

從能源基本面的角度來看，我提到了天然氣方面發生的一些事情。我的意思是——我認為你必須告訴我們，LP 團隊已經達到了他們對銷售和其他東西的預期，而我們正在解決這些問題。所以，是的，今年的開局是樂觀的，但我們會在八月回來與您詳細討論全年的情況。

That's very helpful. And then on Gray Oak, so good to see the open season started there. Do you think producers though are waiting to see the outcome of some of these potential offshore VLCC docks like SPOT before committing more barrels to Corpus? And then, I guess, just broadly, how do you think about the risks to your Corpus footprint if one of those offshore projects get sanctioned maybe how much of your volume flowing into Ingleside is backed by take-or-pay contracts?

這非常有幫助。然後是灰橡樹，很高興看到開放季節在那裡開始。您是否認為生產商在向 Corpus 投入更多石油之前，正在等待 SPOT 等潛在海上 VLCC 碼頭的結果？然後，我想，從廣義上講，如果這些離岸項目之一獲得批准，您如何看待 Corpus 足跡所面臨的風險，也許流入 Ingleside 的交易量有多少是由照付不議合約支持的？

Praneeth, thanks for the question. So as you know, the basin is tightening serially here every quarter as more production comes on, and by the way, Corpus, I think is trading at $0.30 or $0.40 premium to Houston, just for distance and loading advantages. So there's a structural advantage to Corpus. We think the timing of this open season, and we've [found] customers, it's going to fit their pistol.

普拉尼斯，謝謝你的提問。如你所知，隨著產量的增加，每個季度這裡的盆地都在連續收緊，順便說一句，我認為 Corpus 的交易價格比休斯頓溢價 0.30 美元或 0.40 美元，只是為了距離和裝載優勢。因此，Corpus 具有結構性優勢。我們認為這個開放季節的時機，並且我們已經[找到]客戶，它將適合他們的手槍。

I think with your question with respect to offshore buoys, I think if that were to go ahead or one of them go ahead, I think the competitors that would suffer most are the smaller, probably Houston-based ship channel, less economic docks, whereas I think the Corpus docks will remain advantaged. So we see a pretty positive outlook for Gray Oak and Ingleside.

我認為，關於你關於離岸浮標的問題，我認為如果要繼續進行或其中一個繼續進行，我認為受影響最大的競爭對手是較小的，可能位於休斯敦的船舶航道，經濟碼頭較少，而我認為Corpus 碼頭將保持優勢。因此，我們認為 Grey Oak 和 Ingleside 的前景非常樂觀。

I think you asked a question about take-or-pays. So Ingleside is take-or-pay for us entirely. And it's fed by and connected to all 5 pipes from the Permian and shippers typically have a take-or-pay on that. One of them is Gray Oak, which we own most of. So it's basically a take-or-pay model for us all the way to the dock.

我想你問的是關於照付不議的問題。因此，Ingleside 對我們來說完全是照付不議。它由來自二疊紀盆地的所有 5 條管道供給並連接，托運人通常對此採取照付不議的方式。其中之一是灰橡木，我們擁有大部分灰橡木。所以對我們來說，這基本上是一種照付不議的模式，一直到碼頭。

Your next question comes from the line Zackery Van Everen from TPH.

您的下一個問題來自 TPH 的 Zackery Van Everen。

Perfect. Just a follow-up on Gray Oak. When that open season wraps, how fast will that volume come online?

完美的。只是灰橡木的後續。當開放季節結束時，該卷上線的速度有多快？

Yes. Thanks. So open season scheduled to close June 28, and we'll bring the capacity on in 2 tranches, 2/3 of it in the second quarter of 2025 and the other piece of it a number of months later. So that's how we see it coming on relatively quickly, and it's a very capital efficient, low multiple expansion for us mostly drag-reducing agent, a couple of tanks, pretty executable.

是的。謝謝。因此，開放季節計劃於 6 月 28 日結束，我們將分兩批恢復運力，其中 2/3 在 2025 年第二季度恢復，另一部分在幾個月後恢復。這就是我們認為它相對較快地出現的方式，而且對我們來說，這是一種非常資本效率低的倍數膨脹，主要是減阻劑，幾個坦克，相當可執行。

Perfect. That makes sense. And then maybe flipping to the gas side. on your Venice project. I saw you guys delivered a little bit of gas to the Gator Express pipeline. Maybe an update on the timeline for that facility or that project to be online.

完美的。這就說得通了。然後可能會轉向氣體側。關於您的威尼斯專案。我看到你們向 Gator Express 管線輸送了一點天然氣。也許是該設施或該項目上線的時間表的更新。

Yes. Thanks for the question, Zack. It's under construction now, and we're working to get that in by the end of the year.

是的。謝謝你的提問，扎克。目前正在建設中，我們正在努力在今年年底前完成。

Your next question comes from the line of Patrick Kenny from National Bank Financial.

您的下一個問題來自國家銀行金融公司的帕特里克·肯尼。

Just maybe on your power business on the back of the Tennessee Ridgeline expansion. And as you talked about this new demand profile for more reliable baseload capacity, whether it's from data centers or other industrial customers. Curious if you might be open to integrating combined cycle or other gas-fired opportunities now within your power segment. Assuming you can maintain your long-term utility-like contracted profile.

也許只是田納西州山脊線擴建後的電力業務。正如您談到的這種新的需求概況，無論是來自資料中心還是其他工業客戶，都需要更可靠的基本負載容量。很好奇您現在是否願意在您的電力領域整合聯合循環或其他燃氣機會。假設您可以維持您的長期實用型合約檔案。

Pat, it's Matthew. Thanks for the question. It's not really on our radar to expand into gas-fired right now. We think that you're right that the data centers and a lot of these customers obviously want reliable 24/7 power, but they also want the renewable credits. So you'll see gas-fired will be, I think, a real important part of meeting this increased electricity demand, but so will renewable and then the customer will take sort of that combined bundled 24/7 power plus RECs up the grid. So we're very focused on building out, as we talked at Investor Day, are late-stage projects that have interconnection agreements.

帕特，這是馬修。謝謝你的提問。目前我們還沒有真正考慮擴展到燃氣發動機。我們認為您是對的，資料中心和許多此類客戶顯然需要可靠的 24/7 電力，但他們也需要可再生信用額度。因此，我認為，您會發現燃氣將成為滿足不斷增長的電力需求的真正重要組成部分，但再生能源也將如此，然後客戶將把這種捆綁的 24/7 電力加上 REC 併入電網。因此，正如我們在投資者日上所說，我們非常專注於建立具有互連協議的後期專案。

And we'll work with the gas-fired and obviously, with Cynthia's business in order to make sure customers get the product that they need. I think longer term, you're right, there's a potential for us, potential for gas fired. But again, we're not really focused on it right now, and it would have to meet our commercial model, utility-like contracts, but again, not a focus right now.

我們將與燃氣業務合作，顯然，與辛西婭的業務合作，以確保客戶獲得他們需要的產品。我認為從長遠來看，你是對的，我們有潛力，有燃氣的潛力。但同樣，我們現在並沒有真正關注它，它必須滿足我們的商業模式、類似公用事業的合同，但同樣，這不是現在的焦點。

Probably the biggest pop we're going to see from power generation on the gas side will be in Cynthia's business. And remember, a lot of gas-fired generation is still 50%, 60% utilization, it can definitely go up. A lot of gas-fired generation does not have long-term contracts, that could happen. And because typically, it's been -- we haven't had as long of utilization full year for the pipelines, now we do. So there's probably going to be a requirement for some of the gas-fired generation folks to firm up, and that's on storage as well.

也許我們將在天然氣發電方面看到的最大的成長將出現在辛西婭的業務中。請記住，許多燃氣發電的利用率仍然是50%、60%，它絕對可以上升。許多燃氣發電企業沒有長期合約，這種情況可能會發生。因為通常情況下，我們全年的管道利用率沒有那麼長，但現在我們有了。因此，一些燃氣發電的人可能需要堅定不移，這也涉及到儲存方面。

But yes, we'll keep our eyes open. And I don't think there's any doubt electricity demand is going up.

但是，是的，我們會睜大眼睛。我認為電力需求的上升是毫無疑問的。

Yes, that's great. And Greg, maybe just a follow-up on your comments there around gas storage. Just curious in light of the extreme cold out West here in the quarter and perhaps a view towards more extreme highs and lows in terms of temperatures going forward. If you're seeing incremental demand from customers for more storage capacity and how you're thinking about this opportunity from a brownfield, greenfield or perhaps M&A standpoint?

是的，那太好了。格雷格（Greg），也許只是您有關天然氣儲存評論的後續行動。只是好奇，鑑於本季西部地區的極端寒冷，也許未來氣溫會出現更極端的高點和低點。如果您看到客戶對更多儲存容量的需求不斷增加，您如何從棕地、綠地或併購的角度考慮這個機會？

Yes. Maybe taking your last one first. We did -- I think the team was on it and ahead of the game when we picked up assets on the storage side last year, both Tres and Aitken Creek and others have stepped in there now. And yes, we continue to add additional cavern space where we can from a brownfield perspective.

是的。也許先拿你的最後一個。我們做到了——我認為當我們去年在儲存方面獲得資產時，團隊就已經在這方面處於領先地位，Tres 和 Aitken Creek 以及其他人現在都已經介入其中。是的，我們繼續從棕地的角度添加額外的洞穴空間。

I would say also on the Distribution side, we see that, and let's not forget, 1/3 of our Distribution storage in Ontario is market-based. So Cynthia, do you want to make any comments on what you're seeing from a pricing or even term perspective?

我還要說的是，在分銷方面，我們看到這一點，而且我們不要忘記，我們在安大略省的分銷存儲的 1/3 是基於市場的。那麼，辛西婭，您想從定價甚至術語的角度對您所看到的內容發表任何評論嗎？

Yes. So we've seen our re-contracting prices go up from 100% to 150%. So there's really strong demand for that. We're bringing on a little bit more this year with Tres cavern 4, so that will be on by the end of the year. We continue to get inbounds for looking at what we can do brownfield and even greenfield. I mean, it'd have to be a pretty big demand to get across that and that would take more time. but we'll look to optimize the existing structures that we have.

是的。所以我們看到我們的重新承包價格從 100% 上漲到 150%。所以對此的需求確實很強烈。今年我們將在 Tres Cavern 4 中推出更多內容，因此將在年底推出。我們繼續關注我們可以在棕地甚至綠地做些什麼。我的意思是，要解決這個問題必須有相當大的需求，而且需要更多的時間。但我們將尋求優化我們現有的結構。

I was just going to say on the GDS side, we're seeing very similar things to what -- at Dawn, to what Cynthia quoted in terms of just the re-contracting rates, but a lot of customers, who previously maybe were just a couple of years that they were signing up for, are going up to 4, even 5 years.

我只是想說，在 GDS 方面，我們看到的情況與 Dawn 的情況非常相似，辛西婭在重新簽約率方面所引用的情況非常相似，但很多客戶以前可能只是他們原本簽約的幾年，現在會增加到四年，甚至五年。

Your next question comes from the line of Manav Gupta from UBS.

您的下一個問題來自瑞銀集團 (UBS) 的 Manav Gupta。

Just one question. What should be the CapEx cadence. Once you get into this -- once you close your utility acquisitions, what would be the CapEx cadence for 2025 or so?

只有一個問題。資本支出節奏應該是多少？一旦你開始考慮這個問題——一旦你完成了公用事業收購，2025 年左右的資本支出節奏是多少？

Yes. We've kind of guided to the fact that we've got a run rate of $6 billion to $7 billion of growth CapEx on an annual basis, got a little more capacity than that, but we'll be very selective in how we use that. So that's our growth CapEx number that we've been talking about.

是的。我們已經意識到這樣一個事實：我們每年的成長資本支出為 60 億至 70 億美元，產能比這多一點，但我們在使用方式上會非常有選擇性。這就是我們一直在談論的成長資本支出數字。

All of which is consistent with equity self-financing, which is important to us, and I know is to investors as well.

所有這些都符合股權自籌資金，這對我們很重要，我知道對投資者也很重要。

That concludes our question-and-answer session. I will now turn the call back over to Rebecca for some final closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。現在我將把電話轉回給麗貝卡，讓她做最後的總結演講。

Great. Thank you, and we appreciate your ongoing interest in Enbridge. As always, our Investor Relations team is available following the call for any additional questions that you may have. Once again, thank you, and have a great day.

偉大的。謝謝您，我們感謝您對安橋的持續關注。像往常一樣，我們的投資者關係團隊將在電話會議後為您解答任何其他問題。再次感謝您，祝您有美好的一天。

Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We appreciate your participation. This concludes today's conference. You may now disconnect.

謝謝你們，女士們、先生們。我們感謝您的參與。今天的會議到此結束。您現在可以斷開連線。