Energy Transfer Made $2.4 Billion From Texas Winter Storm

By Gerson Freitas Jr (Bloomberg)

Energy Transfer LP, the pipeline giant controlled by billionaire Kelcy Warren, has emerged as the biggest winner so far from the deadly winter storm that paralyzed Texas in February.

The company saw a positive earnings impact from the extreme weather of about $2.4 billion, it said Thursday in its first-quarter earnings statement. Energy Transfer raised its full-year earnings guidance to as much as $13.3 billion, from up to $11 billion previously. The stock jumped as much as 4.9% in after-hours trading.

The company joins a growing list of gas market players who reaped windfalls totaling almost $5 billion amid the chaos of the storm. Plunging prices and power cuts interrupted the normal flow of gas from many wells. Those with available supplies were able to sell at sky-high spot prices.

Speculation over the extent of Energy Transfer’s gains began soon after the storm when Co-Chief Executive Officer Marshall McCrea told investors in a conference call that the company had done “exceptionally well” as a dramatic gas shortage spurred demand for the supplies held in the company’s storage facilities. The fossil-fuel hauler was sued by CPS Energy, a Texas utility, in the immediate aftermath of the crisis for allegedly charging a natural gas price more than 15,000% higher than normal. Energy Transfer rejected the claims.

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