S&P dips DPL, Dayton Power

S&P said it downgraded its ratings for DPL Inc. and its subsidiary Dayton Power & Light Co. (AES Ohio) to BB from BB+. The agency also lowered all issue ratings a notch but left the recovery ratings unchanged and removed all the ratings from CreditWatch, where the agency placed them with negative implications on April 28.

The outlook is negative.

Both companies obtained a rate case order from the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio authorizing it to increase its base distribution rates by about $75 million. However, the rate increase will not go into effect until the company has a new electric security plan (ESP 4) in place, which is not expected before mid-2023.

“Though we view the rate order as generally supportive of credit quality, we still project DPL's funds from operations (FFO) to debt to remain below our prior downgrade threshold of 8%. The company's weak financial measures reflect regulatory lag, the eventual discontinuance of the company's rate stabilization charge (RSC), and a robust capital spending plan,” S&P said in a press release.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.