CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwire - May 9, 2012) - Enbridge Inc. (TSX:ENB) (NYSE:ENB) "Put simply, 2011 may have been the best year ever for Enbridge. We were the largest single contributor to the Toronto Stock Exchange Composite. Our total shareholder return for 2011 was 40%. Earnings per share grew by 11% and we increased our dividend by 15%. Through the year we paid out $759 million in dividends. We injected nearly $5.0 billion into the Canadian and US economies with our capital budget," said Patrick D. Daniel, Chief Executive Officer addressing shareholders at Enbridge's annual general meeting held in Toronto today.
Mr. Daniel noted that Enbridge's outlook is positive and the company remains confident in being able to achieve 10+% annual earnings per share growth through the middle of the decade.
"Looking beyond 2012, Enbridge has its largest-ever suite of growth prospects extending across all our operations," said Mr. Daniel. "Between now and 2015, we have $14 billion of new projects that will come on stream; and we have identified another $30+ billion in promising opportunities that are now in various stages of investigation."
Enbridge is pursuing growth projects across its core businesses of liquids pipelines, gas transportation, gas distribution and green energy, as well as in new businesses in power transmission and Canadian midstream natural gas. Underscoring Enbridge's growth is a strong commitment to safety and corporate social responsibility. "Enbridge moves a huge amount of energy to people who need it and we strive to do that as safely as possible. It is our primary Corporate Social Responsibility to deliver energy and enable society."
A shareholder proposal with respect to Enbridge's Northern Gateway Pipelines Project was defeated by approximately 60% of votes cast at the meeting. The text of the resolution, and management's response is published in the Company's Management Information Circular (MIC). The MIC and final voting results on all resolutions are expected to be available at www.enbridge.com within three business days of the meeting.
In his remarks, and responses to shareholder and proxyholder questions, Mr. Daniel spoke to the Northern Gateway Project, to the benefits it will deliver for British Columbians, Albertans and for Canadians, and to Enbridge's continuing and extensive efforts to engage those living along the proposed route of the pipelines.
"Over the past 10 years we have held 2,500 public meetings, 123 open houses, 150 presentations and 64 workshops on Gateway. Through that outreach we have met directly with more than 17,000 people. To date, we have entered into equity and long term partnership agreements with over 20 of the 45 groups who have received such offers. We anticipate executing similar agreements with additional groups, in coming weeks," said Mr. Daniel.
Mr. Daniel added that, "Interestingly, while the project has attracted a vocal opposition, an Ipsos poll just released by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce shows that the vast majority of Canadians, 75%, think that Canada needs to do what it takes to diversify our oil and gas markets."
In conclusion, Mr. Daniel highlighted Enbridge's ongoing contribution to building healthy, vibrant communities, and to responsible stewardship of the environment. "More than 11,000 riders across the country raised $44 million to support cancer research in Enbridge's Ride to Conquer Cancer in 2011. Earlier this year, Enbridge was once again named one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations, and ranked Number 2 in all of Canada, and in April, for the third consecutive year, we were named one of Canada's Greenest Employers for 2012.
"Through our Neutral Footprint initiative we will plant a tree for every tree we remove to build new facilities; we will generate a KW of renewable energy for every KW of energy we consume in our operations; and we will conserve an acre of land for every acre of wilderness our growth projects permanently impact."
Enbridge Inc. is a North American leader in delivering energy and one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations. As a transporter of energy, Enbridge operates, in Canada and the U.S., the world's longest crude oil and liquids transportation system. The Company also has a significant and growing involvement in natural gas gathering, transmission and midstream businesses, and an increasing involvement in power transmission. As a distributor of energy, Enbridge owns and operates Canada's largest natural gas distribution company, and provides distribution services in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. As a generator of energy, Enbridge has interests in close to 1,000 megawatts of renewable and alternative energy generating capacity and is expanding its interests in wind and solar energy, geothermal and hybrid fuel cells. Enbridge employs more than 7,000 people, primarily in Canada and the U.S. and is ranked as one of Canada's Greenest Employers, and one of the Top 100 Companies to Work for in Canada. Enbridge's common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. For more information, visit www.enbridge.com.
Certain information provided in this news release constitutes forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate", "expect", "project", "estimate", "forecast" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Although Enbridge believes that these statements are based on information and assumptions which are current, reasonable and complete, these statements are necessarily subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties pertaining to operating performance, regulatory parameters, weather, economic conditions and commodity prices. You can find a discussion of those risks and uncertainties in our Canadian securities filings and American SEC filings. While Enbridge makes these forward-looking statements in good faith, should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from those expected. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Enbridge assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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