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Entergy 10-K 2008 Documents found in this filing:
UNITED STATES
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
Indicate by check mark if the registrants are well-known seasoned issuers, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
Indicate by check mark if the registrants are not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrants (1) have filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrants were required to file such reports), and (2) have been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes þ No oIndicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of the registrants' knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. [ ] Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definition of "accelerated filer," "large accelerated filer," and "smaller reporting company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrants are shell companies (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act.) Yes o No þSystem Energy Resources meets the requirements set forth in General Instruction I(1) of Form 10-K and is therefore filing this Form 10-K with reduced disclosure as allowed in General Instruction I(2). System Energy Resources is reducing its disclosure by not including Part III, Items 10 through 13 in its Form 10-K. The aggregate market value of Entergy Corporation Common Stock, $0.01 Par Value, held by non-affiliates as of the end of the second quarter of 2007, was $21.0 billion based on the reported last sale price of $107.35 per share for such stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 29, 2007. Entergy Corporation is the sole holder of the common stock of Entergy Arkansas, Inc., Entergy Mississippi, Inc., Entergy New Orleans, Inc., and System Energy Resources, Inc. Entergy Corporation is the sole holder of the common stock of Entergy Louisiana Holdings, Inc., which is the sole holder of the common membership interests in Entergy Louisiana, LLC. Entergy Corporation is the sole holder of the common stock of EGS Holdings, Inc., which is the sole holder of the common membership interests in Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, L.L.C. DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE Portions of the Proxy Statement of Entergy Corporation to be filed in connection with its Annual Meeting of Stockholders, to be held May 2, 2008, are incorporated by reference into Parts I and III hereof. TABLE OF CONTENTS
This combined Form 10-K is separately filed by Entergy Corporation and its six "Registrant Subsidiaries": Entergy Arkansas, Inc., Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, L.L.C., Entergy Louisiana, LLC, Entergy Mississippi, Inc., Entergy New Orleans, Inc., and System Energy Resources, Inc. Information contained herein relating to any individual company is filed by such company on its own behalf. Each company makes representations only as to itself and makes no other representations whatsoever as to any other company. The report should be read in its entirety as it pertains to each respective reporting company. No one section of the report deals with all aspects of the subject matter. Separate Item 6, 7, and 8 sections are provided for each reporting company, except for the Notes to the financial statements. The Notes to the financial statements for all of the reporting companies are combined. All Items other than 6, 7, and 8 are combined for the reporting companies. FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION In this combined report and from time to time, Entergy Corporation and the Registrant Subsidiaries each makes statements as a reporting company concerning its expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, strategies, and future events or performance. Such statements are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believes," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "estimates," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the only means to identify these statements. Although each of these reporting companies believes that these forward-looking statements and the underlying assumptions are reasonable, it cannot provide assurance that they will prove correct. Any forward-looking statement is based on information current as of the date of this combined report and speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made. Except to the extent required by the federal securities laws, these reporting companies undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. There are factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, including those factors discussed or incorporated by reference in (a) Item 1A. Risk Factors, (b) Management's Financial Discussion and Analysis, and (c) the following factors (in addition to others described elsewhere in this combined report and in subsequent securities filings):
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION (Concluded)
DEFINITIONS Certain abbreviations or acronyms used in the text and notes are defined below:
i
DEFINITIONS (Continued)
ii DEFINITIONS (Concluded)
iii
ENTERGY'S BUSINESS Entergy is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail electric distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 MW of electric generating capacity, and Entergy is the second-largest nuclear power generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Entergy generated annual revenues of $11.5 billion in 2007 and had approximately 14,300 employees as of December 31, 2007. Entergy operates primarily through two business segments: Utility and Non-Utility Nuclear.
In addition to its two primary, reportable, operating segments, Entergy also operates the non-nuclear wholesale assets business. The non-nuclear wholesale assets business sells to wholesale customers the electric power produced by power plants that it owns while it focuses on improving performance and exploring sales or restructuring opportunities for its power plants. Such opportunities are evaluated consistent with Entergy's market-based point-of-view. 1
2 The following shows the principal subsidiaries and affiliates within Entergy's business segments. Companies that file reports and other information with the SEC under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 are identified in bold-faced type.
Strategy Entergy aspires to achieve industry-leading total shareholder returns in an environmentally responsible fashion by leveraging the scale and expertise inherent in its core nuclear and utility operations. Entergy's scope includes electricity generation, transmission and distribution as well as natural gas transportation and distribution. Entergy focuses on operational excellence with an emphasis on safety, reliability, customer service, sustainability, cost efficiency, and risk management. Entergy also focuses on portfolio management to make periodic buy, build, hold, or sell decisions based upon its analytically-derived points of view, which are updated as market conditions evolve. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Availability of SEC filings and other information on Entergy's website Entergy's annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments are available without charge on its website, http://www.shareholder.com/entergy/edgar.cfm, as soon as reasonably practicable after they are filed electronically with the SEC. Entergy is providing the address to its Internet site solely for the information of investors. Entergy does not intend the address to be an active link or to otherwise incorporate the contents of the website into this report. Part I, Item 1 is continued on page 173. 3 ENTERGY CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES REPORT OF MANAGEMENT Management of Entergy Corporation and its subsidiaries has prepared and is responsible for the financial statements and related financial information included in this document. To meet this responsibility, management establishes and maintains a system of internal controls designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. This system includes communication through written policies and procedures, an employee Code of Entegrity, and an organizational structure that provides for appropriate division of responsibility and training of personnel. This system is also tested by a comprehensive internal audit program. Entergy management assesses the effectiveness of Entergy's internal control over financial reporting on an annual basis. In making this assessment, management uses the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control - Integrated Framework. Management acknowledges, however, that all internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations and can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation. Entergy Corporation and its subsidiaries' independent registered public accounting firm, Deloitte & Touche LLP, has issued an attestation report on the effectiveness of Entergy's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2007, which is included herein on pages 352 through 358. In addition, the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, composed solely of independent Directors, meets with the independent auditors, internal auditors, management, and internal accountants periodically to discuss internal controls, and auditing and financial reporting matters. The Audit Committee appoints the independent auditors annually, seeks shareholder ratification of the appointment, and reviews with the independent auditors the scope and results of the audit effort. The Audit Committee also meets periodically with the independent auditors and the chief internal auditor without management present, providing free access to the Audit Committee. Based on management's assessment of internal controls using the COSO criteria, management believes that Entergy maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2007. Management further believes that this assessment, combined with the policies and procedures noted above, provides reasonable assurance that Entergy's financial statements are fairly and accurately presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
4 ENTERGY CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES MANAGEMENT'S FINANCIAL DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS Entergy operates primarily through two business segments: Utility and Non-Utility Nuclear.
In addition to its two primary, reportable, operating segments, Entergy also operates the non-nuclear wholesale assets business. The non-nuclear wholesale assets business sells to wholesale customers the electric power produced by power plants that it owns while it focuses on improving performance and exploring sales or restructuring opportunities for its power plants. Such opportunities are evaluated consistent with Entergy's market-based point-of-view. Following are the percentages of Entergy's consolidated revenues and net income generated by its operating segments and the percentage of total assets held by them:
Plan to Pursue Separation of Non-Utility Nuclear In November 2007, the Board approved a plan to pursue a separation of the Non-Utility Nuclear business from Entergy through a tax-free spin-off of Non-Utility Nuclear to Entergy shareholders. SpinCo, the term used to identify the new company that is yet to be named, will be a new, separate, and publicly-traded company. In addition, under the plan, SpinCo and Entergy are expected to enter into a nuclear services business joint venture, with 50% ownership by SpinCo and 50% ownership by Entergy. The nuclear services business board of directors will be comprised of equal membership from both Entergy and SpinCo and may include independent directors. Upon completion of the spin-off, Entergy Corporation's shareholders will own 100% of the common equity in both SpinCo and Entergy. Entergy expects that SpinCo's business will be substantially comprised of Non-Utility Nuclear's assets, including its six nuclear power plants, and Non-Utility Nuclear's power marketing operation. Entergy Corporation's remaining business will primarily be comprised of the Utility business. The nuclear services business joint venture is expected to operate the nuclear assets owned by SpinCo. The nuclear services business is also expected to offer nuclear services to third parties, including decommissioning, plant relicensing, and plant operation support services, including the services currently provided for the Cooper Nuclear Station in Nebraska. 5 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., the current NRC-licensed operator of the Non-Utility Nuclear plants, filed an application in July 2007 with the NRC seeking indirect transfer of control of the operating licenses for the six Non-Utility Nuclear power plants, and supplemented that application in December 2007 to incorporate the planned business separation. Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. will remain the operator of those plants after the separation. Entergy Operations, Inc., the current NRC-licensed operator of Entergy's five Utility nuclear plants, will remain a wholly-owned subsidiary of Entergy and will continue to be the operator of the Utility nuclear plants. In the December 2007 supplement to the NRC application, Entergy Nuclear Operations provided additional information regarding the spin-off transaction, organizational structure, technical and financial qualifications, and general corporate information. The NRC published a notice in the Federal Register establishing a period for the public to submit a request for hearing or petition to intervene in a hearing proceeding. The NRC notice period expired on February 5, 2008 and two petitions to intervene in the hearing proceeding were filed before the deadline. Each of the petitions opposes the NRC's approval of the license transfer on various grounds, including contentions that the approval request is not adequately supported regarding the basis for the proposed structure, the adequacy of decommissioning funding, and the adequacy of financial qualifications. Entergy will submit answers to the petitions, and the NRC or a presiding officer designated by the NRC will determine whether a hearing will be granted. If a hearing is granted, the NRC is expected to issue a procedural schedule providing for limited discovery, written testimony and a legislative-type hearing. The NRC will continue to review the application and prepare a Safety Evaluation Report. On January 28, 2008, Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee and Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. requested approval from the Vermont Public Service Board for the indirect transfer of control, consent to pledge assets, guarantees and assignments of contracts, amendment to certificate of public good to reflect name change, and replacement of guaranty and substitution of a credit support agreement for Vermont Yankee. A prehearing conference scheduled for February 27, 2008 was postponed due to weather. On January 28, 2008, Entergy Nuclear FitzPatrick, Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 2, Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 3, Entergy Nuclear Operations, and corporate affiliate NewCo (also referred to as SpinCo) filed a petition with the New York Public Service Commission (NYPSC) requesting a declaratory ruling regarding corporate reorganization or in the alternative an order approving the transaction and an order approving debt financing. Petitioners also requested confirmation that the corporate reorganization will not have an effect on Entergy Nuclear FitzPatrick's, Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 2's, Entergy Nuclear Indian Point 3's, and Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.' status as lightly regulated entities in New York, given that they will continue to be competitive wholesale generators. The deadline for parties to file comments or request intervention is April 7, 2008. Pursuant to Federal Power Act Section 203, on February 21, 2008, an application was filed with the FERC requesting approval for the indirect disposition and transfer of control of jurisdictional facilities of a public utility. The review of the filing by FERC will be focused on determining that the transaction will have no adverse effects on competition, wholesale or retail rates and on federal and state regulation. Also, the FERC will seek to determine that the transaction will not result in cross-subsidization by a regulated utility or the pledge or encumbrance of utility assets for the benefit of a non-utility associate company. Subject to market terms and conditions and pursuant to the plan, SpinCo is expected to execute approximately $4.5 billion of debt financing in connection with the separation. Anticipated uses of the proceeds are for SpinCo to retain $0.5 billion for working capital and for Entergy to retain $4 billion. Entergy expects to use $2.5 billion for share repurchases and $1.5 billion for debt reduction. Entergy is targeting third quarter 2008 as the effective date for the spin-off and nuclear services business joint venture transactions to be completed. Entergy expects the transactions to qualify for tax-free treatment for U.S. federal income tax purposes for both Entergy and its shareholders. Final terms of the transactions and spin-off completion are subject to several conditions including the final approval of the Board. As Entergy pursues completion of the separation and establishment of the nuclear services business joint venture, Entergy will continue to consider possible modifications to and variations upon the transaction structure, including a sponsored spin-off, a partial initial public offering preceding the spin-off, or the addition of a third-party joint venture partner. 6 Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita In August and September 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused catastrophic damage to large portions of the Utility's service territory in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the effect of extensive flooding that resulted from levee breaks in and around the greater New Orleans area. The storms and flooding resulted in widespread power outages, significant damage to electric distribution, transmission, and generation and gas infrastructure, and the loss of sales and customers due to mandatory evacuations and the destruction of homes and businesses. Entergy has pursued a broad range of initiatives to recover storm restoration and business continuity costs. Initiatives include obtaining reimbursement of certain costs covered by insurance, obtaining assistance through federal legislation for damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and pursuing recovery through existing or new rate mechanisms regulated by the FERC and local regulatory bodies.
Insurance Claims
See Note 8 to the financial statements for a discussion of Entergy's conventional property insurance program. Entergy has received a total of $134.5 million as of December 31, 2007 on its Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita insurance claims, including $69.5 million that Entergy received in the second quarter 2007 in settlement of its Hurricane Katrina claim with one of its two excess insurers. In the third quarter 2007, Entergy filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against its other excess insurer on the Hurricane Katrina claim. At issue in the lawsuit is whether any policy exclusions limit the extent of coverage provided by that insurer. There was an aggregation limit of $1 billion for all parties insured by the primary insurer for any one occurrence at the time of the Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita losses, and the primary insurer notified Entergy that it expects claims for Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita to materially exceed this limit. Entergy currently estimates that its remaining net insurance recoveries for the losses caused by the hurricanes, including the effects of the primary insurance aggregation limit being exceeded and the litigation against the excess insurer, will be approximately $270 million. Entergy currently expects to receive payment for the majority of its estimated insurance recovery related to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita through 2009. Community Development Block Grants In December 2005, the U.S. Congress passed the Katrina Relief Bill, a hurricane aid package that includes $11.5 billion in Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) (for the states affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma) that allows state and local leaders to fund individual recovery priorities. The bill includes language that permits funding to be provided for infrastructure restoration. New Orleans In March 2006, Entergy New Orleans provided a justification statement to state and local officials in connection with its pursuit of CDBG funds to mitigate Hurricane Katrina restoration costs that otherwise would be borne by customers. The statement included all the estimated costs of Hurricane Katrina damage, as well as a lost customer base component intended to help offset the need for storm-related rate increases. In October 2006, the Louisiana Recovery Authority Board endorsed a resolution proposing to allocate $200 million in CDBG funds to Entergy New Orleans to defray gas and electric utility system repair costs in an effort to provide rate relief for Entergy New Orleans customers. The proposal was developed as an action plan amendment and published for public comment. State lawmakers approved the action plan in December 2006, and the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved it in February 2007. Entergy New Orleans filed applications seeking City Council certification of its storm-related costs incurred through December 2006. Entergy New Orleans supplemented this request to include the estimated future cost of the gas system rebuild. In March 2007, the City Council certified that Entergy New Orleans incurred $205 million in storm-related costs through December 2006 that are eligible for CDBG funding under the state action plan, and certified Entergy New Orleans' estimated costs of $465 million for its gas system rebuild. In April 2007, Entergy New Orleans executed an agreement with the Louisiana Office of Community Development (OCD) under which
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$200 million of CDBG funds will be made available to Entergy New Orleans. Entergy New Orleans submitted the agreement to the bankruptcy court, which approved it on April 25, 2007. Entergy New Orleans has received $180.8 million of the funds as of December 31, 2007, and under the agreement with the OCD, Entergy New Orleans expects to receive the remainder as it incurs and submits additional eligible costs. Mississippi In March 2006, the Governor of Mississippi signed a law that established a mechanism by which the MPSC could authorize and certify an electric utility financing order and the state could issue bonds to finance the costs of repairing damage caused by Hurricane Katrina to the systems of investor-owned electric utilities. Because of the passage of this law and the possibility of Entergy Mississippi obtaining CDBG funds for Hurricane Katrina storm restoration costs, in March 2006, the MPSC issued an order approving a Joint Stipulation between Entergy Mississippi and the Mississippi Public Utilities Staff that provided for a review of Entergy Mississippi's total storm restoration costs in an Application for an Accounting Order proceeding. In June 2006, the MPSC issued an order certifying Entergy Mississippi's Hurricane Katrina restoration costs incurred through March 31, 2006 of $89 million, net of estimated insurance proceeds. Two days later, Entergy Mississippi filed a request with the Mississippi Development Authority for $89 million of CDBG funding for reimbursement of its Hurricane Katrina infrastructure restoration costs. Entergy Mississippi also filed a Petition for Financing Order with the MPSC for authorization of state bond financing of $169 million for Hurricane Katrina restoration costs and future storm costs. The $169 million amount included the $89 million of Hurricane Katrina restoration costs plus $80 million to build Entergy Mississippi's storm damage reserve for the future. Entergy Mississippi's filing stated that the amount actually financed through the state bonds would be net of any CDBG funds that Entergy Mississippi received. In October 2006, the Mississippi Development Authority approved for payment and Entergy Mississippi received $81 million in CDBG funding for Hurricane Katrina costs. The MPSC then issued a financing order authorizing the issuance of state bonds to finance $8 million of Entergy Mississippi's certified Hurricane Katrina restoration costs and $40 million for an increase in Entergy Mississippi's storm damage reserve. $30 million of the storm damage reserve was set aside in a restricted account. A Mississippi state entity issued the bonds in May 2007, and Entergy Mississippi received proceeds of $48 million. Entergy Mississippi will not report the bonds on its balance sheet because the bonds are the obligation of the state entity, and there is no recourse against Entergy Mississippi in the event of a bond default. To service the bonds, Entergy Mississippi is collecting a system restoration charge on behalf of the state, and will remit the collections to the state. By analogy to and in accordance with Entergy's accounting policy for collection of sales taxes, Entergy Mississippi will not report the collections as revenue because it is merely acting as the billing and collection agent for the state. Additional Securitization Proceedings Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, and Entergy Texas have filed with their respective retail regulators for recovery of storm restoration costs, including through securitization. These filings and their results are discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements. Entergy New Orleans Bankruptcy As a result of the effects of Hurricane Katrina and the effect of extensive flooding that resulted from levee breaks in and around the New Orleans area, on September 23, 2005, Entergy New Orleans filed a voluntary petition in bankruptcy court seeking reorganization relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. On May 7, 2007, the bankruptcy judge entered an order confirming Entergy New Orleans' plan of reorganization. With the receipt of CDBG funds, and the agreement on insurance recovery with one of its excess insurers, Entergy New Orleans waived the conditions precedent in its plan of reorganization, and the plan became effective on May 8, 2007. Following are significant terms in Entergy New Orleans' plan of reorganization: 8
With confirmation of the plan of reorganization, Entergy reconsolidated Entergy New Orleans in the second quarter 2007, retroactive to January 1, 2007. Because Entergy owns all of the common stock of Entergy New Orleans, reconsolidation does not affect the amount of net income that Entergy recorded from Entergy New Orleans' operations for the current or prior periods, but does result in Entergy New Orleans' financial results being included in each individual income statement line item in 2007, rather than only its net income being presented as "Equity in earnings of unconsolidated equity affiliates," as will remain the case for 2005 and 2006. 9 Results of Operations 2007 Compared to 2006 Following are income statement variances for Utility, Non-Utility Nuclear, Parent & Other business segments, and Entergy comparing 2007 to 2006 showing how much the line item increased or (decreased) in comparison to the prior period:
Refer to "SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA - FIVE-YEAR COMPARISON OF ENTERGY CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES" which accompanies Entergy Corporation's financial statements in this report for further information with respect to operating statistics. Earnings were negatively affected in the fourth quarter 2007 by expenses of $52 million ($32 million net-of-tax) recorded in connection with a nuclear operations fleet alignment. This process was undertaken with the goals of eliminating redundancies, capturing economies of scale, and clearly establishing organizational governance. Most of the expenses related to the voluntary severance program offered to employees. Approximately 200 employees from the Non-Utility Nuclear business and 150 employees in the Utility business accepted the voluntary severance program offers. As discussed above, Entergy New Orleans has been reconsolidated retroactive to January 1, 2007 and its results are included in each individual income statement line item for 2007. The variance explanations for the Utility for 2007 compared to 2006 in "Results of Operations" reflect the 2006 results of operations of Entergy New Orleans as if it were reconsolidated in 2006, consistent with the 2007 presentation including the results in each individual income statement line item. Entergy's as-reported results for 2006, which had Entergy New Orleans deconsolidated, and the amounts needed to reconsolidate Entergy New Orleans, which include intercompany items, are set forth in the table below. 10
Net Revenue Utility Following is an analysis of the change in net revenue comparing 2007 to 2006.
The volume/weather variance resulted primarily from increased electricity usage in the residential and commercial sectors, including increased usage during the unbilled sales period. Billed retail electricity usage increased by a total of 1,591 GWh, an increase of 1.6%. See "MANAGEMENT'S FINANCIAL DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS - Critical Accounting Estimates" herein and Note 1 to the financial statements for a discussion of the accounting for unbilled revenues.
The base revenues variance resulted from rate increases primarily at Entergy Louisiana effective September 2006 for the 2005 formula rate plan filing to recover LPSC-approved incremental deferred and ongoing purchased power capacity costs. The formula rate plan filing is discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements. 11 The fuel recovery variance is primarily due to the inclusion of Grand Gulf costs in Entergy New Orleans' fuel recoveries effective July 1, 2006. In June 2006, the City Council approved the recovery of Grand Gulf costs through the fuel adjustment clause, without a corresponding change in base rates (a significant portion of Grand Gulf costs was previously recovered through base rates). The increase is also due to purchased power costs deferred at Entergy Louisiana and Entergy New Orleans as a result of the re-pricing, retroactive to 2003, of purchased power agreements among Entergy system companies as directed by the FERC. The transmission revenue variance is due to higher rates and the addition of new transmission customers in late-2006. The purchased power capacity variance is due to higher capacity charges and new purchased power contracts that began in mid-2006. A portion of the variance is due to the amortization of deferred capacity costs and is offset in base revenues due to base rate increases implemented to recover incremental deferred and ongoing purchased power capacity charges at Entergy Louisiana, as discussed above. The net wholesale revenue variance is due primarily to 1) more energy available for resale at Entergy New Orleans in 2006 due to the decrease in retail usage caused by customer losses following Hurricane Katrina and 2) the inclusion in 2006 revenue of sales into the wholesale market of Entergy New Orleans' share of the output of Grand Gulf, pursuant to City Council approval of measures proposed by Entergy New Orleans to address the reduction in Entergy New Orleans' retail customer usage caused by Hurricane Katrina and to provide revenue support for the costs of Entergy New Orleans' share of Grand Gulf. The net wholesale revenue variance is partially offset by the effect of lower wholesale revenues in the third quarter 2006 due to an October 2006 FERC order requiring Entergy Arkansas to make a refund to a coal plant co-owner resulting from a contract dispute. Non-Utility Nuclear Net revenue increased for Non-Utility Nuclear from $1,388 million for 2006 to $1,839 million for 2007 primarily due to higher pricing in its contracts to sell power and additional production available resulting from the acquisition of the Palisades plant in April 2007. Amortization of the Palisades purchased power agreement liability, which is discussed in Note 15 to the financial statements, also contributed to the increase. The increase was partially offset by the effect on revenues of four refueling outages in 2007 compared to two in 2006. Following are key performance measures for Non-Utility Nuclear for 2007 and 2006:
Parent & Other Net revenue decreased for Parent & Other from $114 million for 2006 to $51 million for 2007 primarily due to the sale of the non-nuclear wholesale asset business' remaining interest in a power development project in the second quarter 2006, which resulted in a $14.1 million gain ($8.6 million net-of-tax). Also contributing to the decrease were higher natural gas prices in 2007 compared to the same period in 2006 as well as lower production as a result of an additional plant outage in 2007 compared to the same period in 2006. A substantial portion of the effect on net income of this decline is offset by a related decrease in other operation and maintenance expenses. 12 Other Income Statement Items Utility
Other operation and maintenance expenses increased from $1,749 million for 2006 to $1,855 million for 2007 primarily due to:
The increase is partially offset by a decrease of $23 million in payroll, payroll-related, and benefits costs. Depreciation and amortization expenses increased from $835 million for 2006 to $850 million for 2007 primarily due to an increase in plant in service and a revision made in the first quarter 2006 to estimated depreciable lives involving certain intangible assets. The increase was partially offset by a revision in the third quarter 2007 related to depreciation previously recorded on storm-related assets. Recovery of the cost of those assets will now be through the securitization of storm costs approved by the LPSC in the third quarter 2007. The securitization approval is discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements. Non-Utility Nuclear Other operation and maintenance expenses increased from $637 million for 2006 to $760 million for 2007 primarily due to the acquisition of the Palisades plant in April 2007 and expenses of $29 million in the fourth quarter 2007 in connection with the nuclear operations fleet alignment. Other expenses increased due to increases of $14.4 million in nuclear refueling outage expense and $15.7 million in decommissioning expense that resulted almost entirely from the acquisition of Palisades in April 2007. Parent & Other Interest charges increased from $101 million for 2006 to $183 million for 2007 primarily due to additional borrowings under Entergy Corporation's revolving credit facilities. Other income decreased from $93 million for 2006 to $3 million for 2007 primarily due to a gain of approximately $55 million (net-of-tax) in the fourth quarter of 2006 related to the Entergy-Koch investment. In 2004, Entergy-Koch sold its energy trading and pipeline businesses to third parties. At that time, Entergy received $862 million of the sales proceeds in the form of a cash distribution by Entergy-Koch. Due to the November 2006 expiration of contingencies on the sale of Entergy-Koch's trading business, and the corresponding release to Entergy-Koch of sales proceeds held in escrow, Entergy received additional cash distributions of approximately $163 million during the fourth quarter of 2006 and recorded a gain of approximately $55 million (net-of-tax). Entergy expects future cash distributions upon liquidation of the partnership will be less than $35 million.
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Income Taxes The effective income tax rate for 2007 was 30.7%. The reduction in the effective income tax rate versus the federal statutory rate of 35% in 2007 is primarily due to:
These factors were partially offset by book and tax differences for utility plant items and state income taxes at the Utility operating companies. The effective income tax rate for 2006 was 27.6%. The reduction in the effective income tax rate versus the federal statutory rate of 35% in 2006 is primarily due to tax benefits, net of reserves, resulting from the tax capital loss recognized in connection with the liquidation of Entergy Power International Holdings, Entergy's holding company for Entergy-Koch. Also contributing to the lower rate for 2006 is an IRS audit settlement that allowed Entergy to release from its tax reserves settled issues relating to 1996-1998 audit cycle. See Note 3 to the financial statements for a reconciliation of the federal statutory rate of 35.0% to the effective income tax rates, and for additional discussion regarding income taxes. 2006 Compared to 2005 Following are income statement variances for Utility, Non-Utility Nuclear, Parent & Other business segments, and Entergy comparing 2006 to 2005 showing how much the line item increased or (decreased) in comparison to the prior period:
14 Utility
Following is an analysis of the change in net revenue comparing 2006 to 2005.
The base revenues variance resulted primarily from increases effective October 2005 for Entergy Gulf States Louisiana for the 2004 formula rate plan filing and the annual revenue requirement related to the purchase of power from the Perryville generating station, and increases for Entergy Texas related to an incremental purchased capacity recovery rider that began in December 2005 and a transition to competition rider that began in March 2006. The Attala costs variance is due to the recovery of Attala power plant costs at Entergy Mississippi through the power management rider. The net income effect of the Attala cost recovery is partially offset by Attala costs in other operation and maintenance expenses, depreciation expense, and taxes other than income taxes. The fuel recovery variance resulted primarily from adjustments of fuel clause recoveries for Entergy Gulf States Louisiana and increased recovery in 2006 of fuel costs from retail and special rate customers. The pass-through rider revenue variance is due to a change in 2006 in the accounting for city franchise tax revenues in Arkansas as directed by the APSC. The change results in an increase in rider revenue with a corresponding increase in taxes other than income taxes, resulting in no effect on net income. The transmission revenue variance is primarily due to new transmission customers in 2006. Also contributing to the increase was an increase in rates effective June 2006. The storm cost recovery variance is due to the return earned on the interim recovery of storm-related costs at Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana in 2006 as allowed by the LPSC. The storm cost recovery filings are discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements. The volume/weather variance resulted from an increase of 1.7% in electricity usage primarily in the industrial sector. The increase was partially offset by the effect of less favorable weather on billed sales in the residential sector, compared to the same period in 2005, and a decrease in usage during the unbilled period. The price applied to unbilled sales variance is due to the exclusion in 2006 of the fuel cost component in the calculation of the price applied to unbilled sales. Effective January 1, 2006, the fuel cost component is no longer included in the unbilled revenue calculation at Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, which is in accordance with regulatory treatment. See "MANAGEMENT'S FINANCIAL DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS - Critical Accounting Estimates" herein. 15 The purchased power capacity variance is primarily due to higher capacity charges and new purchased power contracts in 2006. A portion of the variance is due to the amortization of deferred capacity costs and is offset in base revenues due to base rate increases implemented to recover incremental deferred and ongoing purchased power capacity charges, as discussed above. Non-Utility Nuclear Net revenue increased for Non-Utility Nuclear primarily due to higher pricing in its contracts to sell power. Also contributing to the increase in revenues was increased generation in 2006 due to power uprates completed in 2005 and 2006 at certain plants and fewer refueling outages in 2006. Following are key performance measures for Non-Utility Nuclear for 2006 and 2005:
Other Operation and Maintenance Expenses Other operation and maintenance expenses increased for the Utility from $1,471 million in 2005 to $1,649 million in 2006 primarily due to the following:
Other operation and maintenance expenses increased for Non-Utility Nuclear from $588 million in 2005 to $637 million in 2006 primarily due to the timing of refueling outages, increased benefit and insurance costs, and increased NRC fees. Taxes Other Than Income Taxes Taxes other than income taxes increased for the Utility from $322 million in 2005 to $361 million in 2006 primarily due to an increase in city franchise taxes in Arkansas due to a change in 2006 in the accounting for city franchise tax revenues as directed by the APSC. The change results in an increase in taxes other than income taxes with a corresponding increase in rider revenue, resulting in no effect on net income. Also contributing to the increase was higher franchise tax expense at Entergy Gulf States, Inc. as a result of higher gross revenues in 2006 and a customer refund in 2005. 16 Other Income Other income increased for the Utility from $111 million in 2005 to $156 million in 2006 primarily due to carrying charges recorded on storm restoration costs. Other income increased for Non-Utility Nuclear primarily due to miscellaneous income of $27 million ($16.6 million net-of-tax) resulting from a reduction in the decommissioning liability for a plant as a result of a revised decommissioning cost study and changes in assumptions regarding the timing of when decommissioning of a plant will begin. Other income increased for Parent & Other primarily due to a gain related to its Entergy-Koch investment of approximately $55 million (net-of-tax) in the fourth quarter of 2006. In 2004, Entergy-Koch sold its energy trading and pipeline businesses to third parties. At that time, Entergy received $862 million of the sales proceeds in the form of a cash distribution by Entergy-Koch. Due to the November 2006 expiration of contingencies on the sale of Entergy-Koch's trading business, and the corresponding release to Entergy-Koch of sales proceeds held in escrow, Entergy received additional cash distributions of approximately $163 million during the fourth quarter of 2006 and recorded a gain of approximately $55 million (net-of-tax). Entergy expects future cash distributions upon liquidation of the partnership will be less than $35 million. Interest Charges Interest charges increased for the Utility and Parent & Other primarily due to additional borrowing to fund the significant storm restoration costs associated with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Discontinued Operations In April 2006, Entergy sold the retail electric portion of the Competitive Retail Services business operating in the ERCOT region of Texas, and now reports this portion of the business as a discontinued operation. Earnings for 2005 were negatively affected by $44.8 million (net-of-tax) of discontinued operations due to the planned sale. This amount includes a net charge of $25.8 million (net-of-tax) related to the impairment reserve for the remaining net book value of the Competitive Retail Services business' information technology systems. Results for 2006 include an $11.1 million gain (net-of-tax) on the sale of the retail electric portion of the Competitive Retail Services business operating in the ERCOT region of Texas. Income Taxes The effective income tax rates for 2006 and 2005 were 27.6% and 36.6%, respectively. The lower effective income tax rate in 2006 is primarily due to tax benefits, net of reserves, resulting from the tax capital loss recognized in connection with the liquidation of Entergy Power International Holdings, Entergy's holding company for Entergy-Koch. Also contributing to the lower rate for 2006 is an IRS audit settlement that allowed Entergy to release from its tax reserves all settled issues relating to the 1996-1998 audit cycle. See Note 3 to the financial statements for a reconciliation of the federal statutory rate of 35.0% to the effective income tax rates, and for additional discussion regarding income taxes. Liquidity and Capital Resources This section discusses Entergy's capital structure, capital spending plans and other uses of capital, sources of capital, and the cash flow activity presented in the cash flow statement. Capital Structure Entergy's capitalization is balanced between equity and debt, as shown in the following table. The increase in the debt to capital percentage from 2006 to 2007 is primarily the result of additional borrowings under Entergy Corporation's revolving credit facility, along with a decrease in
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shareholders' equity primarily due to repurchases of common stock. This increase in the debt to capital percentage is in line with Entergy's financial and risk management aspirations. The decrease in the debt to capital percentage from 2005 to 2006 is the result of an increase in shareholders' equity, primarily due to an increase in retained earnings, partially offset by repurchases of common stock.
Net debt consists of debt less cash and cash equivalents. Debt consists of notes payable, capital lease obligations, preferred stock with sinking fund, and long-term debt, including the currently maturing portion. Capital consists of debt, shareholders' equity, and preferred stock without sinking fund. Net capital consists of capital less cash and cash equivalents. Entergy uses the net debt to net capital ratio in analyzing its financial condition and believes it provides useful information to its investors and creditors in evaluating Entergy's financial condition. Long-term debt, including the currently maturing portion, makes up substantially all of Entergy's total debt outstanding. Following are Entergy's long-term debt principal maturities and estimated interest payments as of December 31, 2007. To estimate future interest payments for variable rate debt, Entergy used the rate as of December 31, 2007. The figures below include payments on the Entergy Louisiana and System Energy sale-leaseback transactions, which are included in long-term debt on the balance sheet.
Note 5 to the financial statements provides more detail concerning long-term debt. In August 2007, Entergy Corporation entered into a $3.5 billion, five-year credit facility, and terminated the two previously existing facilities, a $2 billion five-year revolving credit facility that was due to expire in May 2010 and a $1.5 billion three-year revolving credit facility that was due to expire in December 2008. Entergy Corporation has the ability to issue letters of credit against the total borrowing capacity of the facility. The weighted average interest rate as of December 31, 2007 was 5.524% on the drawn portion of the facility. The facility fee is currently 0.09% of the commitment amount. The facility fee and interest rate can fluctuate depending on the senior unsecured debt ratings of Entergy Corporation. As of December 31, 2007, amounts outstanding under the $3.5 billion credit facility are:
Entergy Corporation's credit facility requires it to maintain a consolidated debt ratio of 65% or less of its total capitalization. If Entergy fails to meet this ratio, or if Entergy or one of the Registrant Subsidiaries (except Entergy New Orleans) defaults on other indebtedness or is in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings, an acceleration of the facility maturity date may occur. 18 Capital lease obligations, including nuclear fuel leases, are a minimal part of Entergy's overall capital structure, and are discussed further in Note 10 to the financial statements. Following are Entergy's payment obligations under those leases:
Notes payable includes borrowings outstanding on credit facilities with original maturities of less than one year. Entergy Arkansas, Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, and Entergy Texas each had credit facilities available as of December 31, 2007 as follows (with the exception of the Entergy Texas facility, which is expected to become available in March 2008 after the fulfillment of certain closing conditions):
19 In August 2007, Entergy Gulf States, Inc. entered into a $200 million, 5-year bank credit facility, with the ability to issue letters of credit against the facility. As of December 31, 2007, the Entergy Gulf States, Inc. credit facility split into the two separate credit facilities shown above, a $100 million credit facility available to Entergy Gulf States Louisiana and a $100 million credit facility for to Entergy Texas. Operating Lease Obligations and Guarantees of Unconsolidated Obligations Entergy has a minimal amount of operating lease obligations and guarantees in support of unconsolidated obligations. Entergy's guarantees in support of unconsolidated obligations are not likely to have a material effect on Entergy's financial condition or results of operations. Following are Entergy's payment obligations as of December 31, 2007 on non-cancelable operating leases with a term over one year:
The operating leases are discussed more thoroughly in Note 10 to the financial statements. Summary of Contractual Obligations of Consolidated Entities
In addition to the contractual obligations, in 2008, Entergy expects to contribute $226 million to its pension plans and $69.6 million to other postretirement plans. Guidance pursuant to the Pension Protection Act of 2006 rules, effective for the 2008 plan year and beyond, may affect the level of Entergy's pension contributions in the future. Also in addition to the contractual obligations, Entergy has $2.122 billion of unrecognized tax benefits and interest for which the timing of payments beyond 12 months cannot be reasonably estimated due to uncertainties in the timing of effective settlement of tax positions. See Note 3 to the financial statements for additional information regarding unrecognized tax benefits. Capital Funds Agreement Pursuant to an agreement with certain creditors, Entergy Corporation has agreed to supply System Energy with sufficient capital to:
20 Capital Expenditure Plans and Other Uses of Capital Following are the amounts of Entergy's planned construction and other capital investments by operating segment for 2008 through 2010:
Maintenance Capital refers to amounts Entergy plans to spend on routine capital projects that are necessary to support reliability of its service, equipment, or systems and to support normal customer growth. Capital Commitments refers to non-routine capital investments for which Entergy is either contractually obligated, has Board approval, or otherwise expects to make to satisfy regulatory or legal requirements. Amounts reflected in this category include the following:
The Utility's generating capacity remains short of customer demand, and its supply plan initiative will continue to seek to transform its generation portfolio with new or repowered generation resources. Opportunities resulting from the supply plan initiative, including new projects or the exploration of alternative financing sources, could result in increases or decreases in the capital expenditure estimates given above. In addition, the planned construction and capital investments estimates shown above do not include the costs associated with the potential interconnection between Entergy Texas and ERCOT that is discussed in Note 2 to the financial statements. These potential interconnection costs are currently
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estimated to be approximately $1 billion. Estimated capital expenditures are also subject to periodic review and modification and may vary based on the ongoing effects of business restructuring, regulatory constraints, environmental regulations, business opportunities, market volatility, economic trends, and the ability to access capital. In April 2007, Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business purchased the 798 MW Palisades nuclear energy plant located near South Haven, Michigan from Consumers Energy Company for a net cash payment of $336 million. Entergy received the plant, nuclear fuel, inventories, and other assets. The liability to decommission the plant, as well as related decommissioning trust funds, was also transferred to Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business. Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business executed a unit-contingent, 15-year purchased power agreement (PPA) with Consumers Energy for 100% of the plant's output, excluding any future uprates. Prices under the PPA range from $43.50/MWh in 2007 to $61.50/MWh in 2022, and the average price under the PPA is $51/MWh. In the first quarter 2007, the NRC renewed Palisades' operating license until 2031. Also, as part of the transaction, Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business assumed responsibility for spent fuel at the decommissioned Big Rock Point nuclear plant, which is located near Charlevoix, Michigan. Palisades' financial results since April 2007 are included in Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business segment. See Note 15 to the financial statements herein for a discussion of the purchase price allocation and the amortization to revenue of the below-market PPA. In April 2007, Entergy Louisiana announced that it plans to pursue the solid fuel repowering of a 538 MW unit at its Little Gypsy plant. Petroleum coke and coal will be the unit's primary fuel sources. In July 2007, Entergy Louisiana filed with the LPSC for approval of the repowering project, and stated that it expects to spend $1.55 billion on the project. In addition to seeking a finding that the project is in the public interest, the filing with the LPSC asks that Entergy Louisiana be allowed to recover a portion of the project's financing costs during the construction period. Hearings were held in October 2007, and the LPSC approved the certification of the project in November 2007, subject to several conditions. One of the conditions is the development and approval of a construction monitoring plan. The approval allowed Entergy Louisiana to order equipment, such as boiler and piping components, so that components can be manufactured to keep the project on schedule. A decision regarding whether to allow Entergy Louisiana to recover a portion of the project's financing costs during the construction period was deferred to Phase II of the proceedings. In December 2007, Entergy Louisiana filed testimony in the Phase II proceeding seeking financing cost recovery and proposing a procedure for synchronizing future base rate recovery by a formula rate plan or base rate filing of the project's non-fuel costs. Phase II hearings are scheduled to begin in May 2008. In December 2007, Entergy Louisiana signed a target cost contract with the engineering, procurement, and construction services contractor, and issued the contractor a notice to proceed with construction. Entergy Louisiana expects the project to be completed in 2012. In July 2007, Entergy Arkansas announced that it had signed an agreement to purchase the Ouachita Generating Facility, a 789 MW power plant, from a subsidiary of Cogentrix Energy, Inc., for $210 million. The facility is a combined-cycle gas-fired generating facility located near the city of Sterlington in northern Louisiana. The facility entered commercial service in 2002. Entergy Arkansas plans to invest approximately $40 million in spare parts purchases and plant improvements, and has estimated transaction costs and contingencies of $6 million. The acquisition also may require transmission upgrades in order for the facility to qualify as a network resource, which costs were recently estimated by the Independent Coordinator of Transmission for the Entergy System to be approximately $70 million, subject to additional evaluation. The Ouachita plant will be 100 percent owned by Entergy Arkansas, and the acquisition is expected to close in 2008. It is planned that, as part of the transaction, Entergy Gulf States Louisiana will purchase one-third of the capacity and output of the facility from Entergy Arkansas. The purchase of the plant is contingent upon obtaining necessary approvals, including full cost recovery, from various federal and state regulatory and permitting agencies. Entergy Arkansas filed with the APSC in September 2007 for its approval of the acquisition, including full cost recovery. The APSC Staff and the Arkansas attorney general have supported Entergy Arkansas' acquisition of the plant, but oppose the sale of one-third of the capacity and energy to Entergy Gulf States Louisiana. The industrial group AEEC has opposed Entergy Arkansas' purchase of the plant. The Arkansas attorney general has opposed recovery of the non-fuel costs of the plant through a separate rider, while the APSC Staff recommended revisions to the rider. In December 2007, the APSC issued an order approving recovery through a rider of the capacity
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costs associated with the interim tolling agreement, which will be in effect until APSC action on the acquisition of the plant. The APSC has scheduled a hearing in April 2008 to address Entergy Arkansas' request for acquisition of the plant and concurrent cost recovery. In January 2008 the FERC issued an order authorizing the acquisition. In November 2007, Entergy Gulf States Louisiana filed a request with the LPSC for authorization to purchase one-third of the capacity and energy of the Ouachita plant during the term of the interim tolling agreement and for authorization to purchase one-third of the plant's capacity and energy on a life-of-unit basis after the plant's acquisition. In January 2008 the LPSC approved the recovery of costs associated with the interim tolling agreement. An LPSC hearing on approval of the purchase of one-third of the plant's capacity and energy on a life-of-unit basis is scheduled for June 2008. Entergy Louisiana plans to replace the Waterford 3 steam generators, along with the reactor vessel closure head and control element drive mechanisms, in 2011. Replacement of these components is common to pressurized water reactors throughout the nuclear industry. The nuclear industry continues to address susceptibility to stress corrosion cracking of certain materials associated with these components within the reactor coolant system. The issue is applicable to Waterford 3 and is managed in accordance with standard industry practices and guidelines. Routine inspections of the steam generators during Waterford 3's Fall 2006 refueling outage identified degradation of certain tube spacer supports in the steam generators that required repair beyond that anticipated prior to the outage. Corrective measures were successfully implemented to permit continued operation of the steam generators. While potential future replacement of these components had been contemplated, additional steam generator tube and component degradation necessitates replacement of the steam generators as soon as reasonably achievable. The earliest the new steam generators can be manufactured and delivered for installation is 2011. A mid-cycle outage performed in 2007 supports Entergy's 2011 replacement strategy. The reactor vessel head and control element drive mechanisms will be replaced at the same time, utilizing the same reactor building construction opening that is necessary for the steam generator replacement. Entergy Louisiana estimates that it will spend approximately $485 million on this project. Dividends and Stock Repurchases Declarations of dividends on Entergy's common stock are made at the discretion of the Board. Among other things, the Board evaluates the level of Entergy's common stock dividends based upon Entergy's earnings, financial strength, and future investment opportunities. At its January 2008 meeting, the Board declared a dividend of $0.75 per share, which is the same quarterly dividend per share that Entergy paid in the third and fourth quarter 2007. The prior quarterly dividend per share was $0.54. Entergy paid $507 million in 2007 and $449 million in 2006 in cash dividends on its common stock. In accordance with Entergy's stock-based compensation plan, Entergy periodically grants stock options to its key employees, which may be exercised to obtain shares of Entergy's common stock. According to the plan, these shares can be newly issued shares, treasury stock, or shares purchased on the open market. Entergy's management has been authorized by the Board to repurchase on the open market shares up to an amount sufficient to fund the exercise of grants under the plans. In addition to the authority to fund grant exercises, in January 2007, the Board approved a program under which Entergy is authorized to repurchase up to $1.5 billion of its common stock, which Entergy expects to complete in 2008. As of December 31, 2007, $997 million of share repurchases have been made pursuant to this program. In January 2008, the Board authorized an incremental $500 million share repurchase program to enable Entergy to consider opportunistic purchases in response to equity market conditions. Entergy's financial aspirations following the consummation of the planned Non-Utility Nuclear spin-off include a potential new share repurchase program targeted at $2.5 billion. The amount of this potential program to follow completion of the spin-off is expected to be reduced by the amount of repurchases made pursuant to the January 2008 incremental program. The amount of repurchases may vary as a result of material changes in business results or capital spending or new investment opportunities. 23 The Board had previously approved a program under which Entergy was authorized to repurchase up to $1.5 billion of its common stock through 2006. Entergy completed this program in the fourth quarter 2006. Entergy New Orleans Debtor-in-Possession Credit Facility On September 26, 2005, Entergy New Orleans, as borrower, and Entergy Corporation, as lender, entered into a debtor-in-possession credit facility to provide funding to Entergy New Orleans during its business restoration efforts. The credit facility provided for up to $200 million in loans. The interest rate on borrowings under the credit facility was the average interest rate of borrowings outstanding under Entergy Corporation's revolving credit facility. With the confirmation of Entergy New Orleans' plan of reorganization in May 2007, Entergy New Orleans repaid to Entergy Corporation, in full, in cash, the $67 million of outstanding borrowings under the debtor-in-possession credit facility. Sources of Capital Entergy's sources to meet its capital requirements and to fund potential investments include:
Circumstances such as weather patterns, fuel and purchased power price fluctuations, and unanticipated expenses, including unscheduled plant outages and storms, could affect the timing and level of internally generated funds in the future. In the following section, Entergy's cash flow activity for the previous three years is discussed. Provisions within the Articles of Incorporation or pertinent indentures and various other agreements relating to the long-term debt and preferred stock of certain of Entergy Corporation's subsidiaries restrict the payment of cash dividends or other distributions on their common and preferred stock. As of December 31, 2007, Entergy Arkansas and Entergy Mississippi had restricted retained earnings unavailable for distribution to Entergy Corporation of $396.4 million and $121.6 million, respectively. All debt and common and preferred equity issuances by the Registrant Subsidiaries require prior regulatory approval and their preferred equity and debt issuances are also subject to issuance tests set forth in corporate charters, bond indentures, and other agreements. The Registrant Subsidiaries have sufficient capacity under these tests to meet foreseeable capital needs. The FERC has jurisdiction over authorizing securities issuances by the Utility operating companies and System Energy (except securities with maturities longer than one year issued by Entergy Arkansas and Entergy New Orleans, which are subject to the jurisdiction of the APSC and the City Council, respectively). No approvals are necessary for Entergy Corporation to issue securities. The FERC has issued orders (FERC Short-Term Orders) approving the short-term borrowing limits of the Utility operating companies and System Energy through March 31, 2008 (except Entergy New Orleans, which is effective through May 4, 2009, and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana and Entergy Texas, which are effective through November 8, 2009). In January 2008, Entergy filed an application with the FERC to extend the authorization period for its current short-term borrowing limits and money pool borrowing arrangement until March 2010 (except for Entergy Gulf States Louisiana and Entergy Texas). Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, Entergy Texas, and System Energy have obtained long-term financing authorization from the FERC, and Entergy Arkansas has obtained long-term financing authorization from the APSC. The long-term securities issuances of Entergy New Orleans are limited to amounts authorized by the City Council, and it intends to file a request during 2008 for renewal of its authority. In addition to borrowings from commercial banks, the FERC Short-Term Orders authorized the Registrant Subsidiaries to continue as participants in the Entergy System money pool. The money pool is an intercompany borrowing arrangement designed to reduce Entergy's subsidiaries' dependence on external short-term borrowings. Borrowings from the money pool and external short-term borrowings combined may not exceed authorized limits. As of December 31, 2007, Entergy's subsidiaries' aggregate money pool and
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external short-term borrowings authorized limit was $2.1 billion, the aggregate outstanding borrowing from the money pool was $346.1 million, and Entergy's subsidiaries had no outstanding short-term borrowings from external sources. See Note 4 to the financial statements for further discussion of Entergy's short-term borrowing limits. Cash Flow Activity As shown in Entergy's Statements of Cash Flows, cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2007, 2006, and 2005 were as follows:
Operating Cash Flow Activity 2007 Compared to 2006 Entergy's cash flow provided by operating activities decreased by $888 million in 2007 compared to 2006. Following are cash flows from operating activities by segment:
2006 Compared to 2005 Entergy's cash flow provided by operating activities increased by $1,980 million in 2006 compared to 2005 primarily due to the following activity:
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Entergy Corporation received a $344 million income tax refund (including $71 million attributable to Entergy New Orleans) as a result of net operating loss carryback provisions contained in the Gulf Opportunity Zone Act of 2005. The Gulf Opportunity Zone Act was enacted in December 2005. The Act contains provisions that allow a public utility incurring a net operating loss as a result of Hurricane Katrina to carry back the casualty loss portion of the net operating loss ten years to offset previously taxed income. The Act also allows a five-year carry back of the portion of the net operating loss attributable to Hurricane Katrina repairs expense and first year depreciation deductions, including 50% bonus depreciation, on Hurricane Katrina capital expenditures. In accordance with Entergy's intercompany tax allocation agreement, $273 million of the refund was distributed to the Utility (including Entergy New Orleans) in April 2006, with the remainder distributed primarily to Non-Utility Nuclear. Investing Activities 2007 Compared to 2006 Net cash used in investing activities increased by $170 million in 2007 compared to 2006. The following activity is notable in comparing 2007 to 2006: 2006 Compared to 2005 Net cash used in investing activities decreased slightly in 2006 compared to 2005 and was affected by the following activity: 26 Financing Activities 2007 Compared to 2006 Net cash used in financing activities decreased by $862 million in 2007 compared to 2006. The following activity is notable in comparing 2007 to 2006:
2006 Compared to 2005 Net cash used in financing activities was $1,084 million in 2006 compared to net cash flow provided by financing activities of $496 million in 2005. Following is a description of the significant financing activity affecting this comparison:
Significant Factors and Known Trends Following are discussions of significant factors and known trends affecting Entergy's business, including rate regulation and fuel-cost recovery, federal regulation, and market and credit risk sensitive instruments. State and Local Rate Regulation and Fuel-Cost Recovery The rates that the Utility operating companies and System Energy charge for their services significantly influence Entergy's financial position, results of operations, and liquidity. These companies are regulated and the rates charged to their customers are determined in regulatory proceedings. Governmental agencies, including the APSC, the City Council, the LPSC, the MPSC, the PUCT, and the FERC, are primarily responsible for approval of the rates charged to customers. Following is a summary of base rate and related proceedings, and proceedings involving Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita cost recovery. These proceedings are discussed in more detail in Note 2 to the financial statements.
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In addition to the regulatory scrutiny connected with base rate proceedings, the Utility operating companies' fuel and purchased power costs recovered from customers are subject to regulatory scrutiny. The Utility operating companies' significant fuel and purchased power cost proceedings are described in Note 2 to the financial statements. 32 Federal Regulation The FERC regulates wholesale rates (including Entergy Utility intrasystem energy exchanges pursuant to the System Agreement) and interstate transmission of electricity, as well as rates for System Energy's sales of capacity and energy from Grand Gulf to Entergy Arkansas, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, and Entergy New Orleans pursuant to the Unit Power Sales Agreement. System Agreement Proceedings Production Cost Equalization Proceeding Commenced by the LPSC The Utility operating companies historically have engaged in the coordinated planning, construction, and operation of generating and bulk transmission facilities under the terms of the System Agreement, which is a rate schedule that has been approved by the FERC. The LPSC has been pursuing litigation involving the System Agreement at the FERC. The proceeding includes challenges to the allocation of costs as defined by the System Agreement and raises questions of imprudence by the Utility operating companies in their execution of the System Agreement. In June 2005, the FERC issued a decision in the System Agreement litigation that had been commenced by the LPSC, and essentially affirmed its decision in a December 2005 order on rehearing. The FERC decision concluded, among other things, that: The FERC's decision reallocates total production costs of the Utility operating companies whose relative total production costs expressed as a percentage of Entergy System average production costs are outside an upper or lower bandwidth. This will be accomplished by payments from Utility operating companies whose production costs are more than 11% below Entergy System average production costs to Utility operating companies whose production costs are more than the Entergy System average production cost, with payments going first to those Utility operating companies whose total production costs are farthest above the Entergy System average. Assessing the potential effects of the FERC's decision requires assumptions regarding the future total production cost of each Utility operating company, which assumptions include the mix of solid fuel and gas-fired generation available to each company and the costs of natural gas and purchased power. Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Texas, and Entergy Mississippi are more dependent upon gas-fired generation sources than Entergy Arkansas or Entergy New Orleans. Of these, Entergy Arkansas is the least dependent upon gas-fired generation sources. Therefore, increases in natural gas prices likely will increase the amount by which Entergy Arkansas' total production costs are below the average total production costs of the Utility operating companies. 33 The LPSC, APSC, MPSC, and the AEEC have appealed the FERC decision to the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Entergy and the City of New Orleans intervened in the various appeals. The D.C. Circuit held oral argument on the appeals in November 2007. Entergy's Utility Operating Companies' Compliance Filing In April 2006, the Utility operating companies filed with the FERC their compliance filing to implement the provisions of the FERC's decision. The filing amended the System Agreement to provide for the calculation of production costs, average production costs, and payments/receipts among the Utility operating companies to the extent required to maintain rough production cost equalization pursuant to the FERC's decision. The FERC accepted the compliance filing in November 2006, with limited modifications. The Utility operating companies filed a revised compliance plan in December 2006 implementing the provisions of the FERC's November order. In accordance with the FERC's order, the first payments/receipts were based on calendar year 2006 production costs, with the payments/receipts among the affected Utility operating companies made in seven monthly installments commencing in June 2007. Various parties filed requests for rehearing of the FERC's order accepting the compliance filing. Among other things, the LPSC requested rehearing of the FERC's decision to have the first payments commence in June 2007, rather than earlier; to not require interest on the unpaid balance, and the FERC's decision with regard to the re-pricing of energy from the Vidalia hydroelectric project for purposes of calculating production cost disparities. Various Arkansas parties requested rehearing of the FERC's decision (1) to require payments be made over seven months, rather than 12; (2) on the application of the +/- 11% bandwidth; and (3) the FERC's decision to reject various accounting allocations proposed by the Utility operating companies. In April 2007, the FERC denied the requests for rehearing, with one exception regarding the issue of retrospective refunds. That issue will be addressed subsequent to the remanded proceeding involving the interruptible load decision discussed further below in this section under "Interruptible Load Proceeding." The LPSC appealed the decision to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Utility operating companies and the APSC intervened in that appeal. Rough Production Cost Equalization Rates In May 2007 Entergy filed with the FERC the rates to implement the FERC's orders in the System Agreement proceeding. The filing shows the following payments/receipts among the Utility operating companies for 2007, based on calendar year 2006 production costs, commencing for service in June 2007, are necessary to achieve rough production cost equalization as defined by the FERC's orders:
Several parties intervened in the rate proceeding at the FERC, including the APSC, the MPSC, the Council, and the LPSC, which have also filed protests. The PUCT also intervened. Certain Entergy Arkansas wholesale customers also intervened, raising issues regarding whether the bandwidth payments are properly reflected in the wholesale rate that Entergy Arkansas charges. The APSC, the MPSC, and the Council asked the FERC to confirm that the FERC did not intend to preempt a retail regulator from undertaking an independent prudence review of the production costs in setting retail rates, or ask the FERC to set the rough production cost equalization payments/receipts for hearing to allow the
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retail regulators the opportunity to evaluate the prudence of the underlying production costs. In July 2007, the FERC accepted the proposed rates for filing, allowed them to go into effect as of June 1, 2007, subject to refund, and set the filing, including the calculation and underlying production costs, for hearing and settlement procedures. Settlement procedures have been terminated, and the proceeding is set for hearing in May 2008. Intervenors in the proceeding filed testimony on February 4, 2008 responding to the Utility operating companies' initial direct testimony. In its testimony, the LPSC argues that Entergy Arkansas was imprudent for failing to exercise a right of first refusal to repurchase up to 180 MW of the Independence plant in 1996 when Entergy Arkansas was offered the power by Entergy Power. According to the LPSC, Entergy Arkansas' failure to exercise this option has resulted in Entergy Arkansas' 2006 production costs being approximately $29 million higher than they otherwise would have been. Another intervenor, AmerenUE, argues that its current wholesale power contract with Entergy Arkansas, pursuant to which Entergy Arkansas sells power to AmerenUE, does not permit Entergy Arkansas to flow through to AmerenUE any portion of Entergy Arkansas' bandwidth payment. According to AmerenUE, Entergy Arkansas has sought to collect from AmerenUE approximately $14.5 million of the 2007 Entergy Arkansas bandwidth payment. The AmerenUE contract is scheduled to expire in August 2009. In addition to these allegations, several intervenors, including the LPSC, the FERC Staff, and the APSC have proposed various accounting changes designed to alter the allocation of costs among the Utility operating companies for purposes of calculating each Utility operating company's production costs. The Utility operating companies' rebuttal testimony is due April 28, 2008. Entergy Arkansas paid $36 million per month to Entergy Gulf States, Entergy Louisiana, and Entergy Mississippi for seven months, beginning in June 2007. Management believes that any changes in the allocation of production costs resulting from the FERC's decision and related retail proceedings should result in similar rate changes for retail customers. The APSC has approved a production cost allocation rider for recovery from customers of the retail portion of the costs allocated to Entergy Arkansas, but set a termination date of December 31, 2008 for the rider. In December 2007, the APSC issued a subsequent order stating the production cost allocation rider will remain in effect, and any future termination of the rider will be subject to eighteen months advance notice by the APSC, which would occur following notice and hearing. Based on the FERC's April 27, 2007 order on rehearing that is discussed above, in the second quarter 2007 Entergy Arkansas recorded accounts payable and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, and Entergy Texas recorded accounts receivable to reflect the rough production cost equalization payments and receipts required to implement the FERC's remedy based on calendar year 2006 production costs. Entergy Arkansas recorded a corresponding regulatory asset for its right to collect the payments from its customers, and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Mississippi, and Entergy Texas recorded corresponding regulatory liabilities for their obligations to pass the receipts on to their customers. The regulatory asset and liabilities are shown as "System Agreement cost equalization" on the respective balance sheets. The liabilities and assets for the preliminary estimate of the payments and receipts required to implement the FERC's remedy based on calendar year 2007 production costs were recorded in December 2007, after all production costs for 2007 had been incurred. The preliminary estimate was recorded based on the following estimate of the payments/receipts among the Utility operating companies for 2008, based on calendar year 2007 production costs:
35 The actual payments/receipts for 2008, based on calendar year 2007 production costs, will not be calculated until the Utility operating companies' FERC Form 1s have been filed. The level of any payments and receipts is significantly affected by a number of factors, including, among others, weather, the price of alternative fuels, the operating characteristics of the Entergy System generating fleet, and multiple factors affecting the calculation of the non-fuel related revenue requirement components of the total production costs, such as plant investment. The Utility operating companies had also filed with the FERC certain proposed modifications to the rough production cost equalization calculation. The FERC rejected certain of the proposed modifications, accepted certain of the proposed modifications without further proceedings, and set two of the proposed modifications for hearing and settlement procedures. Settlement discussions are ongoing in one of the proceedings. Settlement procedures were terminated in the second proceeding that involves changes to the functionalization of costs to the production function and a hearing in that proceeding is currently scheduled for March 2008. In April 2007, the LPSC filed a complaint with the FERC in which it sought to have the FERC order the following modifications to Entergy's rough production costs equalization calculation: (1) elimination of interruptible loads from the methodology used to allocate demand-related capacity costs; and (2) change of the method used to re-price energy from the Vidalia hydroelectric project for purposes of calculating production cost disparities. Entergy filed an intervention and protest in this proceeding. In May 2007 the FERC denied the LPSC's complaint. The LPSC has requested rehearing, and FERC consideration of that request is still pending. APSC Complaint at the FERC In June 2006 the APSC filed a complaint with the FERC against Entergy Services as the representative of Entergy Corporation and the Utility operating companies, pursuant to Sections 205, 206 and 207 of the Federal Power Act (FPA). The APSC complaint states, "the purpose of the complaint is to institute an investigation into the prudence of Entergy's practices affecting the wholesale rates that flow through its System Agreement." The complaint requests, among other things, that the FERC disallow any costs found to be imprudent, with a refund effective date to be set at the earliest possible time. The APSC requested that the FERC investigate several specific areas, including issues related to Entergy's transmission system. Several parties have intervened in the proceeding, including the MPSC, the LPSC, and the City Council.In June 2007 the FERC denied the APSC's complaint on the basis that it was premature. The FERC found that the Utility operating companies' annual rough production cost equalization filing is the appropriate proceeding for the retail regulators to raise prudence issues. Regarding transmission, the FERC found that the FERC has recently implemented reforms related to transmission. If those reforms are inadequate to address the APSC's concerns, then it can renew its complaint. The City Council asked for rehearing or clarification of this order to confirm that the FERC did not intend to preempt a retail regulator from undertaking an independent prudence review of the production costs in setting retail rates. The FERC denied the request in December 2007, reiterating its conclusion that the annual rough production cost equalization filing is the appropriate proceeding for the retail regulators to raise prudence issues. Interruptible Load Proceeding In April 2007 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued its opinion in the LPSC's appeal of the FERC's March 2004 and April 2005 orders related to the treatment under the System Agreement of the Utility operating companies' interruptible loads. In its opinion, the D.C. Circuit concluded that the FERC (1) acted arbitrarily and capriciously by allowing the Utility operating companies to phase-in the effects of the elimination of the interruptible load over a 12-month period of time; (2) failed to adequately explain why refunds could not be ordered under Section 206(c) of the Federal Power Act; and (3) exercised appropriately its discretion to defer addressing the cost of sulfur dioxide allowances until a later time. The D.C. Circuit remanded the matter to the FERC for a more considered determination on the issue of refunds. The FERC issued its order on remand in September 2007, in which it directs Entergy to make a compliance filing removing all interruptible load from the computation of peak load responsibility commencing April 1, 2004 and to issue any necessary refunds to reflect this change. In
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addition, the order directs the Utility operating companies to make refunds for the period May 1995 through July 1996. Entergy, the APSC, the MPSC, and the City Council have requested rehearing of the FERC's order on remand. The FERC granted the Utility operating companies' request to delay the payment of refunds for the period May 1995 through July 1996 until 30 days following a FERC order on rehearing. Entergy Arkansas Notice of Termination of System Agreement Participation and Related APSC Investigation Citing its concerns that the benefits of its continued participation in the current form of the System Agreement have been seriously eroded, in December 2005, Entergy Arkansas submitted its notice that it will terminate its participation in the current System Agreement effective ninety-six (96) months from the date of the notice or such earlier date as authorized by the FERC. Entergy Arkansas indicated, however, that a properly structured replacement agreement could be a viable alternative. The APSC had previously commenced an investigation, in 2004, into whether Entergy Arkansas' continued participation in the System Agreement is in the best interests of its customers. More than once in the investigation proceeding Entergy Arkansas and its president, Hugh McDonald, have filed testimony with the APSC in response to requests by the APSC. In addition, Mr. McDonald has appeared before the APSC on more than one occasion at public hearings for questioning. In December 2007, the APSC ordered Mr. McDonald to file testimony each month with the APSC detailing progress toward development of successor arrangements, beginning in March 2008.The APSC had also previously commenced investigations concerning Entergy Louisiana's Vidalia purchased power contract and Entergy Louisiana's then pending acquisition of the Perryville power plant. Entergy Arkansas has provided information to the APSC in these investigations and no further activity has occurred in them. Entergy Mississippi Notice of Termination of System Agreement Participation In October 2007 the MPSC issued a letter confirming its belief that Entergy Mississippi should exit the System Agreement in light of the recent developments involving the System Agreement. The MPSC letter also requested that Entergy Mississippi advise the MPSC regarding the status of the Utility operating companies' effort to develop successor arrangements to the System Agreement and advise the MPSC regarding Entergy Mississippi's position with respect to withdrawal from the System Agreement. In November 2007, pursuant to the provisions of the System Agreement, Entergy Mississippi provided its written notice to terminate its participation in the System Agreement effective ninety-six (96) months from the date of the notice or such earlier date as authorized by the FERC. LPSC and City Council Action Related to the Entergy Arkansas and Entergy Mississippi Notices of Termination In light of the notices of Entergy Arkansas and Entergy Mississippi to terminate participation in the current System Agreement, in January 2008 the LPSC unanimously voted to direct the LPSC Staff to begin evaluating the potential for a new agreement. Likewise, the New Orleans City Council opened a docket to gather information on progress towards a successor agreement. LPSC System Agreement Complaint at the FERC On December 18, 2006, the LPSC filed a complaint requesting the FERC "immediately institute a proceeding to determine whether, and on what terms, [Entergy Arkansas] may withdraw" from the System Agreement. The complaint alleges that "safeguards must be adopted to ensure that the remaining operating companies and their customers are protected from adverse effects of the termination attempt of [Entergy Arkansas]." The LPSC requests that the FERC (1) investigate the effect that Entergy Arkansas' notice of termination will have on the rates, charges, and billings under the System Agreement and the capacity and production costs of the remaining Utility operating companies and adopt remedies that are just and reasonable; and (2) provide for the continuation of the bandwidth payments by Entergy Arkansas, require Entergy Arkansas to provide "generating capacity or wholesale power contracts to Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States-Louisiana sufficient to satisfy the rough production cost equalization requirements established in the System Agreement orders," or require "hold harmless protection
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be put in place to prevent any harm to [Entergy Louisiana] and [Entergy Gulf States-Louisiana] as a result of the impact of [Entergy Arkansas'] termination." The LPSC complaint further urges the FERC to find that "Entergy controls the actions of [Entergy Arkansas] and is responsible for and liable for any damages caused and remedies required due to [Entergy Arkansas'] termination." The Utility operating companies filed a response to the LPSC complaint on January 31, 2007, explaining that the System Agreement explicitly provides each Utility operating company the unilateral right to terminate its participation in the System Agreement upon 96 months written notice to the other Utility operating companies. This right is absolute and unambiguous and is not conditioned or limited in any way, as the LPSC's complaint would suggest. The unilateral right to terminate has been in the System Agreement at least since 1973 and the agreement has been litigated before the FERC by the LPSC on numerous occasions. At no point has the LPSC raised this issue nor has the FERC determined the termination provision to be unjust or unreasonable. In June 2007 the FERC denied the LPSC's complaint on the basis that it was premature. The FERC's order indicates that the FERC will evaluate at the time of Entergy Arkansas' departure whether "the System Agreement will remain just and reasonable for the remaining members . . . and likewise that any new Entergy Arkansas jurisdictional wholesale arrangements will be just and reasonable." The FERC Order goes on to state that "in light of the history and nature of the existing members' planning and operation of their facilities under the System Agreement, it is possible it may ultimately be appropriate to require transition measures or other conditions to ensure just and reasonable wholesale rates and services" upon the termination of Entergy Arkansas' participation in the current System Agreement. Calcasieu Generating Facility Acquisition In conjunction with the application of Entergy Gulf States Louisiana and Calcasieu Power, LLC seeking FERC approval of Entergy Gulf States Louisiana's acquisition of the Calcasieu Generating Facility, the Utility operating companies filed a Petition for Declaratory Order requesting that the FERC find either (1) that in those circumstances where a resource to be acquired or constructed has been determined by Entergy's Operating Committee to be a resource devoted to serving Entergy System load and has been approved by the applicable retail regulator, the cost of such resource shall be reflected in the rough production cost equalization calculation; or (2) that Entergy Gulf States Louisiana's acquisition of the Calcasieu facility is prudent and the costs are properly reflected in the rough production cost equalization calculation. The APSC, LPSC, MPSC, City Council, and several other parties intervened in the proceeding, with the APSC, LPSC, and City Council filing protests. In July 2007 the FERC denied the application for a declaratory order. The FERC concluded that (1) the circumstances surrounding resource acquisition on the Entergy System were not of sufficient "local interest" to warrant the FERC deferring to the findings of the applicable regulator; and (2) with respect to the alternative request for relief, consistent with its prior precedent, the FERC would not "entertain the issue of the prudence of a purchase until such time as the purchaser passes on the cost of the purchase to its customers." In a subsequent order issued in November 2007, the FERC approved Entergy Gulf States Louisiana's acquisition of the plant. Independent Coordinator of Transmission In 2000, the FERC issued an order encouraging utilities to voluntarily place their transmission facilities under the control of independent RTOs (regional transmission organizations). Delays in implementing the FERC RTO order occurred due to a variety of reasons, including the fact that utility companies, other stakeholders, and federal and state regulators have had to work to resolve various issues related to the establishment of such RTOs. In November 2006, after nearly a decade of effort, including filings, orders, technical conferences, and proceedings at the FERC, the Utility operating companies installed the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) as their Independent Coordinator of Transmission (ICT). The installation does not transfer control of Entergy's transmission system to the ICT, but rather vests with the ICT responsibility for:
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The initial term of the ICT is four years, and Entergy is precluded from terminating the ICT prior to the end of the four-year period. After the FERC issued its April 2006 order approving the ICT proposal, the Utility operating companies made a series of compliance filings with the FERC that were protested by various parties. The FERC has accepted the compliance filings and denied various requests for rehearing, although appeals of the FERC's ICT orders are currently pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. As stated above, SPP was installed as the ICT in November 2006.
In October 2006 the Utility operating companies filed revisions to their Open Access Transmission Tariff ("OATT") with the FERC to establish a mechanism to recover from their wholesale transmission customers the (1) costs incurred to develop or join an RTO and to develop the ICT; and (2) on-going costs that will be incurred under the ICT agreement. Several parties intervened opposing the proposed tariff revisions. In December 2006 the FERC accepted for filing Entergy's proposed tariff revisions, and set them for hearing and settlement procedures. In its Order, the FERC concluded that each of the Utility operating companies "should be allowed the opportunity to recover its start up costs associated with its formation of the ICT and its participation in prior failed attempts to form an RTO," and also that the proposed tariffs raised issues of fact that are more properly addressed through hearing and settlement procedures. In June 2007 the Utility operating companies reached a settlement-in-principle with the parties to the proceeding and the FERC approved the settlement in November 2007. In the FERC's April 2006 order that approved Entergy's ICT proposal, the FERC stated that the weekly procurement process (WPP) must be operational within approximately 14 months of the FERC order, or June 24, 2007, or the FERC may reevaluate all approvals to proceed with the ICT. The Utility operating companies have been working with the ICT and a software vendor to develop the software and systems necessary to implement the WPP. The Utility operating companies also filed with the FERC in April 2007 a request to make certain corrections and limited modifications to the current WPP tariff provisions. The Utility operating companies have filed status reports with the FERC notifying the FERC that, due to unexpected issues with the development of the WPP software and testing, the WPP is still not operational. The Utility operating companies filed a revised tariff with the FERC on January 31, 2008 to address issues identified during the testing of the WPP. The Utility operating companies have requested the FERC to rule on the proposed amendments by April 30, 2008 and allow them to go into effect May 11, 2008, following which the WPP would be expected to become operational. In March 2004, the APSC initiated a proceeding to review Entergy's proposal and compare the benefits of such a proposal to the alternative of Entergy joining the SPP RTO. The APSC sought comments from all interested parties on this issue. Various parties, including the APSC General Staff, filed comments opposing the ICT proposal. A public hearing has not been scheduled by the APSC at this time, although Entergy Arkansas has responded to various APSC data requests. In May 2004, Entergy Mississippi filed a petition for review with the MPSC
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requesting MPSC support for the ICT proposal. A hearing in that proceeding was held in August 2004, and the MPSC has taken no further action. Entergy New Orleans appeared before the Utility Committee of the City Council in June 2005 to provide information on the ICT proposal, and the Council has taken no further action. Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana filed an application with the LPSC requesting that the LPSC find that the ICT proposal is a prudent and appropriate course of action. A hearing in the LPSC proceeding on the ICT proposal was held in October 2005, and the LPSC voted to approve the ICT proposal in July 2006. Available Flowgate Capacity (AFC) Proceeding In April 2007 the FERC issued an order terminating the AFC hearing involving Entergy because Entergy's ICT has been installed. In accordance with the provisions of the FERC order approving the ICT, during the first three quarters of 2007 the Utility operating companies notified the FERC, the ICT, and the stakeholders that certain instances had been identified in which software errors related to the AFC process had resulted in the reporting of inaccurate data. Following the reporting of these errors, certain market participants continue to urge the FERC to move forward with an AFC hearing in light of the identified errors. FERC Investigations In 2005, the Utility operating companies notified the FERC's Office of Market Oversight and Investigations (FERC enforcement) that certain historic data related to the hourly AFC models was inadvertently lost due to errors in the implementation of a data archiving process. The data at issue is hourly AFC data for the nine-month period April 27, 2004 through January 31, 2005. Subsequently, the Utility operating companies notified FERC enforcement that: (1) Entergy had identified certain instances in which transmission service either was granted when there was insufficient transmission capacity or was not granted when there was sufficient transmission capacity; and (2) Entergy had failed to timely post to Entergy's OASIS site certain curtailment and schedule information. Entergy cooperated fully and timely in the investigation of these instances. In January 2007, the FERC approved a settlement agreement between the Utility operating companies and the FERC enforcement staff resolving all issues arising out of or related to these issues. The Order accepting the Stipulation and Consent Agreement indicates that the matters "were generally the result of low-level employees' inadvertent actions, done without the knowledge or acquiescence of senior management. The matters did not reflect undue preference or undue discrimination and resulted in little or no quantifiable harm." Pursuant to the Stipulation and Consent Agreement, Entergy agreed to pay a $2 million civil penalty and to make a $1 million payment to the Nike/Entergy Green Schools for New Orleans Partnership. Additionally, the Stipulation and Consent Agreement required the establishment of a compliance plan that includes independent auditing provisions. Interconnection Orders The Utility operating companies (except Entergy New Orleans) have been parties to several proceedings before the FERC in which independent generation entities (GenCos) seek refunds of monies that the GenCos had previously paid to the Entergy companies for facilities necessary to connect the GenCos' generation facilities to Entergy's transmission system. As of December 31, 2007, the Utility operating companies' obligation resulting from the FERC's decisions to grant the GenCos refunds is approximately $105.4 million, including $26.7 million at Entergy Arkansas, $20.2 million at Entergy Louisiana, $39.9 million at Entergy Mississippi and $18.6 million at Entergy Texas. To the extent the Utility operating companies have been ordered to provide refunds, or may in the future be ordered to provide additional refunds, the majority of these costs will qualify for inclusion in the Utility operating companies' rates. The recovery of these costs is not automatic, however, especially at the retail level, where the majority of the cost recovery would occur. With respect to the facilities for which the FERC has ordered refunds, the ICT recently completed a report evaluating the classification of facilities that have produced the refunds. The Utility operating companies are reviewing the report and will make appropriate filings with the FERC to implement the ICT's reclassifications, which could reduce the amount of refunds not yet credited against transmission charges. 40 Energy Policy Act of 2005 The Energy Policy Act of 2005 became law in August 2005. The legislation contains electricity provisions that, among other things: Market and Credit Risk Sensitive Instruments Market risk is the risk of changes in the value of commodity and financial instruments, or in future operating results or cash flows, in response to changing market conditions. Entergy holds commodity and financial instruments that are exposed to the following significant market risks:
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Entergy's commodity and financial instruments are also exposed to credit risk. Credit risk is the risk of loss from nonperformance by suppliers, customers, or financial counterparties to a contract or agreement. Credit risk also includes potential demand on liquidity due to collateral requirements within supply or sales agreements. Commodity Price Risk Power Generation The sale of electricity from the power generation plants owned by Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business, unless otherwise contracted, is subject to the fluctuation of market power prices. Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business has entered into PPAs and other contracts to sell the power produced by its power plants at prices established in the PPAs. Entergy continues to pursue opportunities to extend the existing PPAs and to enter into new PPAs with other parties. Following is a summary of the amount of the Non-Utility Nuclear business' output that is currently sold forward under physical or financial contracts:
Non-Utility Nuclear's purchase of the FitzPatrick and Indian Point 3 plants from NYPA included value sharing agreements with NYPA. In October 2007, Non-Utility Nuclear and NYPA amended and restated the value sharing agreements to clarify and amend certain provisions of the original terms. Under the amended value sharing agreements, Non-Utility Nuclear will make annual payments to NYPA based on the generation output of the Indian Point 3 and FitzPatrick plants from January 2007 through December 2014. Non-Utility Nuclear will pay NYPA $6.59 per MWh for power sold from Indian Point 3, up to an annual cap of $48 million, and $3.91 per MWh for power sold from FitzPatrick, up to an annual cap of $24 million. The annual payment for each year is due by January 15 of the following year, with the payment for year 2007 output due on January 15, 2008. If Entergy or an Entergy affiliate ceases to own the plants, then, after January 2009, the annual payment obligation terminates for generation after the date that Entergy ownership ceases. 42 Non-Utility Nuclear will record its liability for payments to NYPA as power is generated and sold by Indian Point 3 and FitzPatrick. Non-Utility Nuclear recorded a $72 million liability for generation through December 31, 2007. An amount equal to the liability will be recorded to the plant asset account as contingent purchase price consideration for the plants. This amount will be depreciated over the expected remaining useful life of the plants. In addition to selling the power produced by its plants, the Non-Utility Nuclear business sells installed capacity to load-serving distribution companies in order for those companies to meet requirements placed on them by the ISO in their area. Following is a summary of the amount of the Non-Utility Nuclear business' installed capacity that is currently sold forward, and the blended amount of the Non-Utility Nuclear business' planned generation output and installed capacity that is currently sold forward:
As of December 31, 2007, approximately 96% of Non-Utility Nuclear's counterparty exposure from energy and capacity contracts is with counterparties with public investment grade credit ratings. Central States Compact Claim The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act of 1980 holds each state responsible for disposal of low-level radioactive waste originating in that state, but allows states to participate in regional compacts to fulfill their responsibilities jointly. Arkansas and Louisiana participate in the Central Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact (Central States Compact or Compact). Commencing in early 1988, Entergy Arkansas, Entergy Gulf States, Inc. and Entergy Louisiana made a series of contributions to the Central States Compact to fund the Central States Compact's development of a low-level radioactive waste disposal facility to be located in Boyd County, Nebraska. In December 1998, Nebraska, the host state for the proposed Central States Compact disposal facility, denied the compact's license application for the proposed disposal facility. Several parties, including the commission that governs the compact (the Compact Commission), filed a lawsuit against Nebraska seeking damages resulting from Nebraska's denial of the proposed facility's license. After a trial, the U.S. District Court concluded that Nebraska violated its good faith obligations regarding the proposed waste disposal facility and rendered a judgment against Nebraska in the amount of $151 million. In August 2004, Nebraska agreed to pay the Compact $141 million in settlement of the judgment. In July 2005, the
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Compact Commission decided to distribute a substantial portion of the proceeds from the settlement to the nuclear power generators that had contributed funding for the Boyd County facility, including Entergy Arkansas, Entergy Gulf States, Inc. and Entergy Louisiana. On August 1, 2005, Nebraska paid $145 million, including interest, to the Compact, and the Compact distributed from the settlement proceeds $23.6 million to Entergy Arkansas, $19.9 million to Entergy Gulf States, Inc., and $19.4 million to Entergy Louisiana. The proceeds contributed $28.7 million in pre-tax income in 2005. Critical Accounting Estimates The preparation of Entergy's financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management to apply appropriate accounting policies and to make estimates and judgments that can have a significant effect on reported financial position, results of operations, and cash flows. Management has identified the following accounting policies and estimates as critical because they are based on assumptions and measurements that involve a high degree of uncertainty, and the potential for future changes in the assumptions and measurements that could produce estimates that would have a material effect on the presentation of Entergy's financial position or results of operations. Nuclear Decommissioning Costs Entergy owns a significant number of nuclear generation facilities in both its Utility and Non-Utility Nuclear business units. Regulations require Entergy to decommission its nuclear power plants after each facility is taken out of service, and money is collected and deposited in trust funds during the facilities' operating lives in order to provide for this obligation. Entergy conducts periodic decommissioning cost studies to estimate the costs that will be incurred to decommission the facilities. The following key assumptions have a significant effect on these estimates:
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In the fourth quarter of 2007, Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business recorded an increase of $100 million in decommissioning liabilities for certain of its plants as a result of revised decommissioning cost studies. The revised estimates resulted in the recognition of a $100 million asset retirement obligation asset that will be depreciated over the remaining life of the units. In the third quarter of 2006, Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business recorded a reduction of $27 million in decommissioning liability for a plant as a result of a revised decommissioning cost study and changes in assumptions regarding the timing of when decommissioning of the plant will begin. The revised estimate resulted in miscellaneous income of $27 million ($16.6 million net-of-tax), reflecting the excess of the reduction in the liability over the amount of undepreciated asset retirement cost recorded at the time of adoption of SFAS 143. In the first quarter of 2005, Entergy's Non-Utility Nuclear business recorded a reduction of $26.0 million in its decommissioning cost liability in conjunction with a new decommissioning cost study as a result of revised decommissioning costs and changes in assumptions regarding the timing of the decommissioning of a plant. The revised estimate resulted in miscellaneous income of $26.0 million ($15.8 million net-of-tax), reflecting the excess of the reduction in the liability over the amount of undepreciated assets retirement cost recorded at the time of adoption of SFAS 143. Unbilled Revenue As discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, Entergy records an estimate of the revenues earned for energy delivered since the latest customer billing. Each month the estimated unbilled revenue amounts are recorded as revenue and a receivable, and the prior month's estimate is reversed. The difference between the estimate of the unbilled receivable at the beginning of the period and the end of the period is the amount of unbilled revenue recognized during the period. The estimate recorded is primarily based upon an estimate of customer usage during the unbilled period and the billed price to customers in that month, including fuel price. Therefore, revenue recognized may be affected by the estimated price and usage at the beginning and end of each period and fuel price fluctuations, in addition to changes in certain components of the calculation. Effective January 1, 2006, Entergy Louisiana and Entergy Gulf States Louisiana reclassified the fuel component of unbilled accounts receivable to deferred fuel and will no longer include the fuel component in the unbilled calculation, which is in accordance with regulatory treatment. Impairment of Long-lived Assets Entergy has significant investments in long-lived assets in all of its segments, and Entergy evaluates these assets against the market economics and under the accounting rules for impairment whenever there are indications that impairments may exist. This evaluation involves a significant degree of estimation and uncertainty, and these estimates are particularly important in Entergy's Utility business and the non-nuclear wholesale assets business. In the Utility business, portions of River Bend and Grand Gulf are not included in rate base, which could reduce the revenue that would otherwise be recovered for the applicable portions of those units' generation. In the non-nuclear wholesale assets business, Entergy's investments in merchant generation assets are subject to impairment if adverse market conditions arise. In order to determine if Entergy should recognize an impairment of a long-lived asset that is to be held and used, accounting standards require that the sum of the expected undiscounted future cash flows from the asset be compared to the asset's carrying value. If the expected undiscounted future cash flows exceed the carrying value, no impairment is recorded; if such cash flows are less than the carrying value, Entergy
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is required to record an impairment charge to write the asset down to its fair value. If an asset is held for sale, an impairment is required to be recognized if the fair value (less costs to sell) of the asset is less than its carrying value. These estimates are based on a number of key assumptions, including:
In the fourth quarter of 2005, Entergy recorded a charge of $39.8 million ($25.8 million net-of-tax) as a result of the impairment of the Competitive Retail Services business' information technology systems. Entergy decided to divest the retail electric portion of the Competitive Retail Services business operating in the ERCOT region of Texas and, in connection with that decision, management evaluated the carrying amount of the Competitive Retail Services business' information technology systems and determined that an impairment provision should be recorded. Qualified Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Entergy sponsors qualified, defined benefit pension plans which cover substantially all employees. Additionally, Entergy currently provides postretirement health care and life insurance benefits for substantially all employees who reach retirement age while still working for Entergy. Entergy's reported costs of providing these benefits, as described in Note 11 to the financial statements, are impacted by numerous factors including the provisions of the plans, changing employee demographics, and various actuarial calculations, assumptions, and accounting mechanisms. Because of the complexity of these calculations, the long-term nature of these obligations, and the importance of the assumptions utilized, Entergy's estimate of these costs is a critical accounting estimate for the Utility and Non-Utility Nuclear segments. Assumptions Key actuarial assumptions utilized in determining these costs include:
Entergy reviews these assumptions on an annual basis and adjusts them as necessary. The falling interest rate environment and worse-than-expected performance of the financial equity markets in previous years have impacted Entergy's funding and reported costs for these benefits. In addition, these trends have caused Entergy to make a number of adjustments to its assumptions. In selecting an assumed discount rate to calculate benefit obligations, Entergy reviews market yields on high-quality corporate debt and matches these rates with Entergy's projected stream of benefit payments. Based on recent market trends, Entergy increased its discount rate used to calculate benefit obligations from 6.0% in 2006 to 6.50% in 2007. Entergy's assumed discount rate used to calculate the 2005 benefit obligations was 5.90%. Entergy reviews actual recent cost trends and projected future trends in establishing health care cost trend rates. Based
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on this review, Entergy's health care cost trend rate assumption used in calculating the December 31, 2007 accumulated postretirement benefit obligation was a 9% increase in health care costs in 2008 gradually decreasing each successive year, until it reaches a 4.75% annual increase in health care costs in 2013 and beyond. In determining its expected long-term rate of return on plan assets, Entergy reviews past long-term performance, asset allocations, and long-term inflation assumptions. Entergy targets an asset allocation for its pension plan assets of roughly 65% equity securities, 31% fixed-income securities and 4% other investments. The target allocation for Entergy's other postretirement benefit assets is 51% equity securities and 49% fixed-income securities. Entergy's expected long-term rate of return on pension plan and non-taxable other postretirement assets used were 8.5% in 2007, 2006 and 2005. Entergy's expected long-term rate of return on taxable other postretirement assets were 6% in 2007 and 5.5% in 2006 and 2005. The assumed rate of increase in future compensation levels used to calculate benefit obligations was 4.23 % in 2007 and 3.25% in 2006 and 2005. Cost Sensitivity The following chart reflects the sensitivity of qualified pension cost to changes in certain actuarial assumptions (dollars in thousands):
The following chart reflects the sensitivity of postretirement benefit cost to changes in certain actuarial assumptions (dollars in thousands):
Each fluctuation above assumes that the other components of the calculation are held constant. Accounting Mechanisms In September 2006, FASB issued SFAS 158, "Employer's Accounting for Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans, an amendment of FASB Statements Nos. 87, 88, 106 and 132(R)," to be effective December 31, 2006. SFAS 158 requires an employer to recognize in its balance sheet the funded status of its benefit plans. Refer to Note 11 to the financial statements for a further discussion of SFAS 158 and Entergy's funded status. In accordance with SFAS No. 87, "Employers' Accounting for Pensions," Entergy utilizes a number of accounting mechanisms that reduce the volatility of reported pension costs. Differences between actuarial assumptions and actual plan results are deferred and are amortized into expense only when the accumulated differences exceed 10% of the greater of the projected benefit obligation or the market-related value of plan assets. If necessary, the excess is amortized over the average remaining service period of active employees.
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Costs and Funding In 2007, Entergy's total qualified pension cost was $135.9 million. Entergy anticipates 2008 qualified pension cost to decrease to $99 million due to an increase in the discount rate (from 6.00% to 6.50%) and 2007 actual return on plan assets greater than 8.5%. Pension funding was $177 million for 2007. Entergy's contributions to the pension trust are currently estimated to be $226 million in 2008. Guidance pursuant to the Pension Protection Act of 2006 rules, effective for the 2008 plan year and beyond, may affect the level of Entergy's pension contributions in the future.The Pension Protection Act of 2006 was signed by the President on August 17, 2006. The intent of the legislation is to require companies to fund 100% of their pension liability; and then for companies to fund, on a going-forward basis, an amount generally estimated to be the amount that the pension liability increases each year due to an additional year of service by the employees eligible for pension benefits. The legislation requires that funding shortfalls be eliminated by companies over a seven-year period, beginning in 2008. The Pension Protection Act also extended the provisions of the Pension Funding Equity Act that would have expired in 2006 had the Pension Protection Act not been enacted, which increased the allowed discount rate used to calculate the pension funding liability. Total postretirement health care and life insurance benefit costs for Entergy in 2007 were $89.6 million, including $26 million in savings due to the estimated effect of future Medicare Part D subsidies. Entergy expects 2008 postretirement health care and life insurance benefit costs to be $93.4 million. This includes a projected $24.7 million in savings due to the estimated effect of future Medicare Part D subsidies. Entergy expects to contribute $69.6 million in 2008 to its other postretirement plans. Other Contingencies As a company with multi-state domestic utility operations and a history of international investments, Entergy is subject to a number of federal, state, and international laws and regulations and other factors and conditions in the areas in which it operates, which potentially subject it to environmental, litigation, and other risks. Entergy periodically evaluates its exposure for such risks and records a reserve for those matters which are considered probable and estimable in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Environmental Entergy must comply with environmental laws and regulations applicable to the handling and disposal of hazardous waste. Under these various laws and regulations, Entergy could incur substantial costs to restore properties consistent with the various standards. Entergy conducts studies to determine the extent of any required remediation and has recorded reserves based upon its evaluation of the likelihood of loss and expected dollar amount for each issue. Additional sites could be identified which require environmental remediation for which Entergy could be liable. The amounts of environmental reserves recorded can be significantly affected by the following external events or conditions:
Litigation Entergy has been named as defendant in a number of lawsuits involving employment, ratepayer, and injuries and damages issues, among other matters. Entergy periodically reviews the cases in which it has been named as defendant and assesses the likelihood of loss in each case as
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probable, reasonably estimable, or remote and records reserves for cases which have a probable likelihood of loss and can be estimated. Notes 2 and 8 to the financial statements include more detail on ratepayer and other lawsuits and management's assessment of the adequacy of reserves recorded for these matters. Given the environment in which Entergy operates, and the unpredictable nature of many of the cases in which Entergy is named as a defendant, however, the ultimate outcome of the litigation Entergy is exposed to has the potential to materially affect the results of operations of Entergy, or its operating company subsidiaries. Sales Warranty and Tax Reserves Entergy's operations, including acquisitions and divestitures, require Entergy to evaluate risks such as the potential tax effects of a transaction, or warranties made in connection with such a transaction. Entergy believes that it has adequately assessed and provided for these types of risks, where applicable. Any reserves recorded for these types of issues, however, could be significantly affected by events such as claims made by third parties under warranties, additional transactions contemplated by Entergy, or completion of reviews of the tax treatment of certain transactions or issues by taxing authorities. Entergy does not expect a material adverse effect on earnings from these matters. New Accounting Pronouncements In September 2006 the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157, "Fair Value Measurements" (SFAS 157), which defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring fair value in GAAP, and expands disclosures about fair value measurements. SFAS 157 generally does not require any new fair value measurements. However, in some cases, the application of SFAS 157 in the future may change Entergy's practice for measuring and disclosing fair values under other accounting pronouncements that require or permit fair value measurements. SFAS 157 is effective for Entergy in the first quarter 2008 and will be applied prospectively. Entergy does not expect the application of SFAS 157 to materially affect its financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. In February 2007 the FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 159, "The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities" (SFAS 159). SFAS 159 provides an option for companies to select certain financial assets and liabilities to be accounted for at fair value with changes in the fair value of those assets or liabilities being reported through earnings. The intent of the standard is to mitigate volatility in reported earnings caused by the application of the more complicated fair value hedging accounting rules. Under SFAS 159, companies can select existing assets or liabilities for this fair value option concurrent with the effective date of January 1, 2008 for companies with fiscal years ending December 31 or can select future assets or liabilities as they are acquired or entered into. Entergy does not expect that the adoption of this standard will have a material effect on its financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. The FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 141(R), "Business Combinations" (SFAS 141(R)) during the fourth quarter 2007. The significant provisions of SFAS 141R are that: (i) assets, liabilities and non-controlling (minority) interests will be measured at fair market value; (ii) costs associated with the acquisition such as transaction-related costs or restructuring costs will be separately recorded from the acquisition and expensed as incurred; (iii) any excess of fair market value of the assets, liabilities and minority interests acquired over the fair market value of the purchase price will be recognized as a bargain purchase and a gain recorded at the acquisition date; and (iv) contractual contingencies resulting in potential future assets or liabilities will be recorded at fair market value at the date of acquisition. SFAS 141(R) applies prospectively to business combinations for which the acquisition date is on or after the beginning of the first annual reporting period beginning on or after December 15, 2008. An entity may not apply SFAS 141(R) before that date. The FASB issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 160, "Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements" (SFAS 160) during the fourth quarter 2007. SFAS 160 enhances disclosures surrounding minority interests in the balance sheet, income statement and statement of comprehensive income. SFAS 160 will also require a parent to record a gain or loss when a subsidiary in which it retains a minority interest is deconsolidated from the parent company. SFAS 160 applies prospectively to business combinations for which the
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acquisition date is on or after the beginning of the first annual reporting period beginning on or after December 15, 2008. An entity may not apply SFAS 160 before that date. In April 2007 the FASB issued Staff Position No. 39-1, "Amendment of FASB Interpretation No. 39" (FSP FIN 39-1). FSP FIN 39-1 allows an entity to offset the fair value of a receivable or payable against the fair value of a derivative that is executed with the same counterparty under a master netting arrangement. This guidance becomes effective for fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2007. Entergy does not expect these provisions to have a material effect on it its financial position. 50
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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM To the Board of Directors and Shareholders We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Entergy Corporation and Subsidiaries (the "Corporation") as of December 31, 2007 and 2006, and the related consolidated statements of income; of retained earnings, comprehensive income, and paid-in capital; and of cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2007. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Corporation's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion. In our opinion, such consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Entergy Corporation and Subsidiaries as of December 31, 2007 and 2006, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2007, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. We have also audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), the Corporation's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2007, based on the criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission and our report dated February 28, 2008 expressed an unqualified opinion on the Corporation's internal control over financial reporting. DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLP New Orleans, Louisiana
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