Public Service Enterprises top profit estimates after winter storm increases gas and power demand

Public Service Enterprise Group surpassed Wall Street expectations?for the first-quarter profits on Tuesday as the 'U.S. Electric and gas utilities benefited from the extreme winter weather, which boosted demand for their?electrical and gas businesses.

PSEG CEO Ralph LaRossa stated that the worst winter storm for 30 years, coupled with temperatures in single digits, led to its highest gas usage since 2019.

The U.S. electricity demand is expected to reach record levels by 2025. This will be accelerated as technology companies ramp up their power consumption at data centers that are growing rapidly. Some sites could use as much energy per capita as a city.

As fossil fuels are increasingly used for transportation and heating, households and businesses also use more electricity.

PSEG reported that electricity sales increased by 4% during the third quarter while gas sold and transported volumes increased by 7%.

PSEG said that its nuclear unit produced about 8 terawatt-hours of electricity during the quarter. This power is used to supply baseload power in New Jersey as well as the wider grid.

Operating expenses rose to $2.77 Billion for the January-March Quarter, up from $2.42 Billion a year ago. Meanwhile, operating revenues grew 19.4% to $3.84 Billion.

PSEG reported an adjusted profit per share of $1.55 for the three-month period ended March 31 compared to analysts' average estimates of $1.44, according data compiled by LSEG.

The company offers electric and gas services to about 4.3 million New Jersey customers. It also operates nuclear power plants through its PSEG Power division. (Reporting from Varun Sahay, Bengaluru. Editing by Vijay Kishore.)

(source: Reuters)