Hydro One first quarter profit up 33 to 222 million, dividend rising

TORONTO - Hydro One says its first-quarter profit rose to $222 million, which was up 33 per cent from the same time last year.

That included $12 million related to its $6.7-billion acquisition of Avista, a U.S. energy company.

The Ontario utility's profit amounted to 37 cents per share, up from 28 cents per share in the first quarter of 2017.

Revenue was $1.58 billion, or $875 million after excluding purchased power.

That compared with 2017 first-quarter revenue of $1.66 billion, or $769 million net of purchased power.

Hydro One says its quarterly dividend will rise by one cent to 23 cents per share, payable June 29. It has paid a dividend of 22 cents per share since last June.

But it's not just the dividends going up.

As CP24 reports, Hydro One's part-time board members approved a $25,000 raise for themselves, effective January 1, 2018. The chair of the board is getting a $70,000 raise.

Salaries have gone from $160,000 per year to $185,000 per year. Half of their compensation comes in cash and the other half in shares.

Board Chair David Denison’s salary was boosted from $260,000 to $330,000.

With files from CP24.