‘Unsatisfactory’: Shareholders work to mitigate lack of dividend
Saturday, 19 April 2025
Shareholders impacted by Alpine Energy’s inability to pay a dividend for at least the next two years, following a long-running overcharge error, say they have prepared for it and are focused on getting the company back on track.
Speaking on behalf of the largest of the four shareholders, Timaru District Holdings Ltd (TDHL) chairperson Mark Rogers said the dividend had equated to roughly 20% of the company’s annual revenue for the past “couple of years”.
“Alpine Energy is a significant proportion of the TDHL investment portfolio. Receiving no dividend is unsatisfactory.”
Rogers said TDHL, which had a 47.5% stake in the lines company, was now engaging with other shareholders “regarding Alpine Energy returning to a position where it can pay an ongoing sustainable dividend”. It was “too early to put a timeframe” on when that might happen, he said.
Last week, councillor Stu Piddington suggested the Timaru community consider selling its shares in the troubled lines company in the wake of the Commerce Commission decision to order a $16.9m refund for customers.
Rogers said Alpine Energy had stopped paying dividends in April 2024, and the holdings company had prepared for the likelihood of that continuing.
“TDHL took a conservative approach through the Statement of Intent and budgeting process and removed all Alpine Energy revenue from our own forecasts for this year and the next three years.”
He said over the past three years, the company had developed its investment strategy, strengthened the balance sheet, improved its capital structure, moved on some legacy investments and focused on improving operational costs.
“While not done explicitly for the scenario of no Alpine Energy dividend, TDHL applied these business practices to minimise its exposure to deteriorating returns from any segment of the portfolio.”
He said those moves had positioned TDHL to continue paying the forecast growing dividend to TDC.
The second largest shareholder, Line Trust South Canterbury, holds a 40% stake in the company and passes dividends back to the community via credits on consumers’ electricity accounts.
Chairperson Mike Downes said the trust would not be “significantly affected” by the non-payment of a dividend, its only source of income, because it had “sufficient reserves” to ensure it could fulfil all other required functions.
The trust did not make a distribution to consumers in 2024, and issued a letter in December explaining that the “small amount of dividend received” would have meant consumers got about $4 which was deemed “uneconomic” to distribute.
Downes said, like TDHL, the trust had also anticipated an extended period without a dividend.
“Fortunately the trust has sufficient funds in reserve … to cover anticipated expenses for the next few years.
“We have, however, as a prudent cost-savings measure, temporarily suspended our annual subsidy towards warmer kiwi homes.”
He said they had also taken steps to “minimise expenditure as much as possible in the interim”.
The Trustees would do everything possible to support the company to return to a dividend paying position going forward, for the benefit of the consumers of South Canterbury, he said.
“We will continue to act as diligent shareholders and monitor the performance of AEL (Alpine Energy Ltd) directors … to ensure that the company is, and remains, a successful business.”
He said the trust had been kept “well informed” from the time the error was discovered and reported “where possible, subject to confidentiality requirements from the Commerce Commission”.
“Line Trust is pleased that the issue is now satisfactorily resolved and appreciates the honesty, diligence and effort put in by AEL board and management to bring this to a conclusion.”
The error, which was reported to authorities in August 2023, was not reported to consumers until eight months later in April 2024.
Exactly when shareholders were told had not been made public, with all four telling The Timaru Herald they had been made aware late in 2023.
At the time, Waimate mayor Stuart Duncan said the council would have preferred to have been told sooner, and had expressed its disappointment to the board.
“My view would be that the company should have owned up to its customers straight away, even if they were unable to immediately compensate them,” McWha said.
A Waimate District Council spokesperson said the lack of dividend would have “a considerable impact” on the council’s finances.
Seemingly the least optimistic of the shareholders which responded, the council had assumed there would be no dividend income over the full term of its Long Term Plan 2025-2034, as outlined in the consultation document which was now open for submissions.
“Council will offset the shortfall through a mix of rates and fiscal prudence.”
It held a 7.54% share in the company.
The Mackenzie District Council, which owned 4.96% of the company, was approached for comment but was yet to respond.