(308) 324-2386
Shannon Peard, Manager of Finance and Administration

Shannon Peard, Manager of Finance and Administration

By Shannon Peard, Manager of Finance and Administration
Let’s take a closer look at Dawson PPD’s 2019 financials. Simply put, the state of the District’s financials is strong.
Dawson PPD serves more than 23,000 customers. The average residential customer consumed 1,369 kilowatt hours and paid $146.86 monthly for their electric use during 2019. On average, residential kWh sold for 10.73 cents.

Operating revenues

 

2019 Dawson PPD Revenue Sources

2019 Dawson PPD Revenue Sources

The sale of electricity to our customers makes up most of Dawson PPD’s operating revenues. During 2019, we sold 485 million kWh and had $56.9 million in operating revenues. Sales were down compared to 2018, mainly due to a wet, cool summer. Irrigation kWh sales were down 41 percent from 2018. Our other rate classes had a similar consumption in 2019 as in 2018.

2019 of Dawson PPD Kilowatt Hours Sold

2019 of Dawson PPD Kilowatt Hours Sold

 

Operating Expenses

2019 Dawson PPD Expenses Per Customer Dollar

2019 Dawson PPD Expenses Per Customer Dollar

Our main operating expense is purchased power. In 2019, Dawson PPD purchased $32.2 million worth of electricity from our wholesale partner, Nebraska Public Power District. Our cost of power was lower than in 2018 because of the decreased kWh sales over the summer.
Purchased power was 61 percent of our total operating expenses in 2019. Other operating expenses include costs associated with providing power to you, like system maintenance and administration. These costs were $13.8 million, or 26 percent, of our operating cost.

Investing back into Dawson PPD

Each year, we invest your dollars back into your electric system. In 2019, we invested $13.7 million. The money was used to build new power lines and rebuild older lines to improve reliability. We also invested in some improvements to Dawson PPD’s facilities and fleet.

The Balance Sheet

A balance sheet contains assets, liabilities and net position. Our total assets equal $217 million. Liabilities equal $86 million and Dawson PPD’s net position is $131 million.

3. Capital Assets

2019 Dawson PPD Capital Assets

2019 Dawson PPD Capital Assets

Capital assets make up a majority of these assets. Assets include investments into the electric distribution system, fleet, facilities and equipment. Dawson PPD has $189 million invested in net capital assets. Our strong electric system allows us to provide reliable power to our customers.

4. Assets

2019 Dawson PPD Assets

2019 Dawson PPD Assets

Dawson PPD has $10 million in cash and investment. A portion of this money is restricted for certain things like future debt payments.

5. Liabilities and net position

Pie chart of 2019 Dawson PPD Liabilities and Net Position

2019 Dawson PPD Liabilities and Net Position

Our long-term debt is our largest liability. Dawson PPD has $64.4 million in outstanding bonds, ranging in interest rates of 1.00-3.55 percent. The District continually looks at opportunities to refinance our debt for better interest savings.
In 2019, Dawson PPD issued $4 million in new debt and refinanced $5.2 million in existing debt. The refinancing will save Dawson PPD and its customers $500,000 in the next 15 years.
The net position is made up of the current and previous year’s accumulated margins. About $125 million, or 95.7 percent of Dawson PPD’s total net position is invested in capital assets, net of related debt.
At Dawson PPD, we pride ourselves on being transparent with our customers. We hope that this review of our financial standing is insightful. Should you have any questions, please feel free to call us at 308-324-2386.

August 2020

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