At this time, please welcome to the podium the Chair of Emera's Board of Directors, Jackie Sheppard.
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Emera's 2017 annual meeting of shareholders. Before we begin, could I ask you to please turn your attention to the screen behind me? It contains a cautionary statement and explains that certain statements made in today's presentations and during the question and answer session afterwards may be forward-looking statements or may use non-GAAP financial measures and accordingly should be received with caution. As part of Emera's commitment to a culture of safety, we like to begin every major meeting with a moment about safety. Safety is a core value at all Emera companies, and we are very proud of the level of commitment shown by all our employees. You may have noticed that we have a number of employees here with us today. They are easily identified in Emera blue T-shirts.
You saw them on the way in, and they are here to help you should you need any assistance. In the event of an emergency, unless you are otherwise instructed, please proceed to the main entrance and Emera volunteers will direct you to the closest exit. Please take a moment now to note the exits around you. For today's meeting, we have the technology to allow people to join by webcast and telephone. Throughout the meeting, any participants joining us by telephone are in listen-only mode. Instructions for submitting comments over the conference bridge on the items to be voted on today will be provided when we get to the voting process. You may also submit comments by email to agm2017@emera.com. On the stage with me today is Chris Huskisson, our President and Chief Executive Officer.
Next to him is Scott Balfour, Emera's Chief Operating Officer, and Stephen Aftanas, Emera's Corporate Secretary. As Emera grows, so does our leadership team. You may have noticed that the Emera executive team and their profiles displayed prior to the meeting, again on the screen behind me. They are also listed in the annual report, and most of them are actually here with us today, and I'm sure they'd be very happy to speak to any of you should you wish after the meeting. In addition to Chris and myself, I would like to introduce our other director nominees. Your management circular provides the career and background particulars of each nominee. I hope you've had the opportunity to review these materials. We have a highly experienced, skilled, and diverse group. Before I introduce the nominees, I would like to take a moment to acknowledge two recent board changes.
Wayne Leonard, who is facing a serious medical condition, decided to retire from the board earlier this year, and we want to thank Wayne for his very, very valuable contribution during his too short tenure with us. Of course, we wish him all the very best. We are pleased to welcome John Rémill, who joined the board in September 2016 following the closing of the TICO transaction, and John was the former CEO of TICO. An official welcome to you, John. At this time, I would like to introduce our other director nominees, and I would ask each of you to please stand and remain standing while all of the directors are introduced.
The director nominees are Sylvia Kremenska, Toronto, Ontario, Henry Damone, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Al Edgeworth, Calgary, Alberta, Jim Eisenhower, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Lynn Loewen, Westmount, Quebec, John MacLennan, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Don Pether, Dundas, Ontario, John Rémill, Tampa, Florida, Andrea Rosen, Toronto, Ontario, and Rick Sergel, Boston, Massachusetts. Thank you. We are very pleased to be back here in Halifax this year, and of course, we're very pleased to be at Dalhousie University this afternoon. Last year, Emera committed CAD 10 million to Dalhousie's IDEA Project, a program designed to inspire and spur innovation and entrepreneurship in Atlantic Canada. I don't know if many of you know this, but this site is already under construction just down the street, and it's going to be a very nice place. While we have important annual meeting business to attend to today, this is also a very special day for another reason.
As you may know, I'm sure you all know, that just over a month ago, Chris notified the board that he plans to retire in 2018. That means that this is his last annual meeting as our President and CEO. Even though Chris will be with us for many months, and this is really the front end of the transition year, I feel it's really a good occasion to recognize his incredible contribution to Emera, the province, and the energy industry. Chris joined Nova Scotia Power in 1977, virtually a boy, 20 years old, I think at that time. During his time with Nova Scotia Power, he held many roles, including Superintendent of Production at the Mersey Hydro System. He was the manager of the Lingan Generation Station. He was Vice President of transmission and distribution, and Executive Vice President of operations. In 2004, he became President and CEO.
As Chris's actual retirement date approaches, we will have many occasions to recognize his contributions. For today, I thought I would give you a very brief snapshot, and it's very brief. What I mean by that is there's a lot to say about Chris. When Chris began as President and CEO, Emera's market capital was CAD 2.1 billion. At the end of the month this year, end of March this year, it reached CAD 10 billion. Revenues have gone from CAD 1.2 billion in 2004 to CAD 4.3 billion this year. Total assets have grown more than seven times, from CAD 4 billion to just over CAD 29 billion this year. With last year's investment in TECO Energy, the organization essentially doubled in size, becoming one of the top 20 regulated utilities in all of North America.
I have worked with many CEOs throughout my own career, and I can tell you firsthand that Chris is a standout. He embodies integrity, intelligence, and incredible energy, and you can just ask the staff about that, and his colleagues. He doesn't tire. He has always been hesitant to draw attention to his own accomplishments, but I think it is fair to say that when he first entered the doors of NSPI, it would have been inconceivable, even for Chris, that his journey at Emera would have gone so far and to such great heights. Perhaps Chris's greatest legacy will be the incredibly talented and experienced team he has developed. The team, coupled with the vision and strategy that Chris has led, and our new transformed asset base, means that Emera is poised with all the fundamentals in place for continued success into the future. Thank you, Chris.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Scott, who will become our CEO when Chris retires. Scott's strong leadership skills, financial acumen, and experience at Emera as CFO and COO make him the right next leader. Congratulations, Scott. Scott doesn't get a hug for a long time. Okay, I'll remember that. Given we are back in Halifax for today's meeting and just up the street from our own headquarters, I thought I'd share a few facts and figures about Emera's growth and how it has impacted the province. Today, Emera has about 7,400 employees across all our businesses, and approximately 2,500 are based right here in Nova Scotia. Our annual operations in Nova Scotia directly boost the province's GDP by roughly CAD 605 million. That's a total of CAD 1.1 billion when supply chain spending and induced effects are included.
Emera and its affiliated companies spend roughly CAD 620 million in the province with just over 3,400 vendors. This economic activity supported more than 6,600 full-time equivalent jobs here in Nova Scotia. Finally, I would like to take a moment to acknowledge a few more accomplishments in 2016. Emera was ranked number one for corporate governance among 231 companies in Canada by the Globe and Mail Board Games. We were added to the TSX 60, a list of the 60 largest publicly traded companies in Canada. Forbes Magazine named Emera one of Canada's best employers. It has often been said, and for good reason, that 2016 truly was a transformational year for the company. As the chair of the board, I want to thank my colleagues on the board, the leadership team, and our employees across all our affiliates for a great year of significant accomplishments.
On that note, the meeting will now come to order. In accordance with the company's articles, I will chair the meeting, and Stephen Aftanas will act as secretary of the meeting. Representatives of CST Trust, the company's registrar and transfer agent, will act as scrutineers for this meeting. They will report on the shareholders in attendance and will count the votes. The scrutineers have reported that a quorum is present at this meeting. Confirmation has been received from the secretary that proper notice of the meeting has been given and that the materials for the meeting were provided to common shareholders. I now declare the meeting duly called and properly constituted for the transaction of business. At this time, I'd like to welcome Greg Blundin, Emera's Chief Financial Officer, to give his financial report.
Thank you, Jackie, and thank you our valued shareholders for joining us today. 2016 was truly a transformational year for Emera. On July 1st, we closed the TECO Energy acquisition after successfully completing the financing for the transaction. The financing was the third-largest utility debt financing ever in the U.S. market. We were in the market at the right time, and we were able to achieve interest rates that were both better than our original expectations. The integration of the TECO companies with Emera is essentially completed with no significant issues. The alignment of the values of the two organizations has made for a smooth combination. With the addition of the regulated Florida and New Mexico operations, our earnings from regulated businesses are now well above our 75%-85% target.
In 2016, we reported adjusted net earnings of CAD 475 million, and we realized another step change in our cash flow from operations, which exceeded CAD 1 billion. We raised the dividends paid to you by 20% last year, and our shareholders realized a total return, that's dividends plus appreciation of the stock price, of 9.6%. We also extended our annual 8% dividend growth target dividend growth through to the end of the decade. We are proud of our ability to generate very strong returns for our shareholders. On an annualized basis, we have exceeded the total shareholder return for the TSX Index and the TSX Canadian Utilities Index for the three-, five-, and 10-year periods. These returns have been driven by our steadily increasing dividend, disciplined approach to growth, and our fiscal management. Our 10-year annualized total shareholder return has been almost 12%.
Our growth over the past decade has been remarkable. In 2007, Emera's net earnings were CAD 151 million, predominantly driven by Nova Scotia Power. Net earnings increased by more than 50% by 2012 to CAD 231 million, with the majority of the growth coming from new investments. Our reported adjusted net income last year was CAD 475 million, an amount that included several items, such as the gain on the sale of our ownership in Algonquin Power that were one-time in nature. Adjusting for these one-time items, our 2016 adjusted net income was CAD 409 million and came from a very different business mix. TECO delivered CAD 172 million in the second half of 2016. Net of the CAD 93 million of permanent financing costs, these operations delivered CAD 79 million of net income for the six months of ownership last year.
This growth can be even more fully appreciated when looking at the cumulative growth rates. Using the fully adjusted, more conservative CAD 409 million of net income and CAD 2.39 of earnings per share in 2016, our adjusted net income compound annual average growth rate from 2007 through to 2016 was 11.7%, and the growth in earnings per share was 6.8%. The same comparisons for the reported CAD 475 million of adjusted net income and CAD 2.77 in EPS would, as you would expect, be higher. We recognize the importance of the dividend to our shareholders. Since 2010, we have delivered a compound average growth in our dividend of 8.8%. We are targeting 8% annual dividend growth through to the end of the decade, with the dividend being fully covered by the earnings and cash flows of our regulated businesses.
I mentioned earlier that cash flow from operations last year exceeded CAD 1 billion for the first time. We have grown cash from operations from CAD 351 million in 2007 to over CAD 1 billion last year, resulting in a compound average growth rate of 13%. These strong cash flows will allow us to fund the dividend, invest in new growth opportunities, and further enhance our balance sheet. To support our earnings and dividend growth through to 2020, we have identified CAD 6.5 billion of capital investment opportunities. These include normal growth capital, investments in projects such as hydroelectricity, facility refurbishments here in Nova Scotia, our investments in the Maritime Link and Labrador Island Link, and technology improvements across all of our companies that will benefit customers.
We fully expect that we will identify additional opportunities over this period, as we anticipate there will be opportunities to invest in large-scale solar in Florida, the Atlantic Link project to bring clean, renewable energy into Massachusetts, and to expand the gas distribution system in New Mexico. We have been active in the capital markets over the past year. In fact, in the 15-month period between the announcement of the TECO acquisition in September of 2015 through to the end of 2016, we raised approximately $10 billion of debt and equity capital. That includes the sale of our investment in Algonquin Power, which raised almost $700 million. For those investors that have supported us, either through our debt issuances, equity offerings, or through our dividend reinvestment program, we want to thank you for your continued support in Emera and your interest. Yesterday, we announced our strong first quarter results.
Adjusted net income rose 27% to CAD 152 million from CAD 120 million in 2016, with improved results from virtually all of our regulated businesses. The Emera Florida and New Mexico companies added CAD 79 million to adjusted net income before taking into account the CAD 45 million of after-tax financing costs related to the transaction. Earnings per share were CAD 0.72, compared with CAD 0.81 in 2016. Despite the higher adjusted net income, earnings per share were lower as a result of the additional shares issued in the second half of 2016. When we announced the TECO transaction, we indicated that our expectation was the transaction would be accretive to our existing business by at least 5% in 2017.
I am pleased to stand here today and tell you that we are on track to meet and likely exceed that projection over the course of the full 2017 year. Cash flow from operations was up almost 50% in Q1 from CAD 233 million to CAD 348 million, helped by the addition of the TICO operations and improved results at Nova Scotia Power and our other regulated operations. In closing, let me summarize the areas that we are most focused on from a financial perspective. We are focused on growing our earnings and our cash flow to support the 8% dividend growth target. To finance the TICO acquisition, we took on a significant amount of additional debt. We maintained our existing credit ratings, but you can expect us to reduce our debt levels over time to further enhance our overall credit quality.
To grow earnings and dividends, we will be making significant capital investments. We will continue to do so with the same disciplined approach that we always have. Thank you.
Thank you, Greg. The scrutineers' report on the number of shares represented at this meeting has been received. Mr. Secretary, could you please read the report?
Madam Chair, the scrutineers have provided their preliminary report. There are present at the meeting in person or represented by proxy more than 95 million shares of the company. This represents over 45% of the outstanding shares. The final report will be kept on file for the record of this meeting.
Thank you. We will now deal with items which require shareholder approval, and I will explain the voting procedure. The mailing to shareholders provided notice that four items would be placed before this meeting for approval. Most shareholders decided to take advantage of internet and telephone voting or mailed their proxy in advance of this meeting. Shareholders here in the room who have not already voted and who want to vote at this meeting were given a ballot at the registration desk by CST Trust. Any shareholder in the room who has not already voted and did not receive a ballot at the desk, please raise your hand now and we will give you a ballot. There's a few. Yep. In order for your ballot to count, please print your name on the ballot and mark whether you are a resident or a non-resident of Canada.
Your ballot must be legible and must indicate your voting intention on each item. If a box is not marked with your voting intention, your vote cannot be counted on that item. The ballots will be collected after the items for approval have been presented to the meeting. There are four items for approval at today's meeting. Employee shareholders or proxy holders will move and second a motion to approve all four items, following which shareholders will have an opportunity to make comments about any of the items. Shareholders in the room who wish to comment on these items may do so by coming to one of the microphones in the room. For those of you on the conference call, our conference operator will provide direction on how to participate. For those of you on our webcast, please send your comment via email to AGM2017@emera.com.
If you have a question that does not relate to one of the four items, I would ask you to please save your question for the question and answer session, which will follow the formal business. After the items have been discussed, we will conduct a ballot vote on each of the four items. After the close of voting and the conclusion of the meeting, we will then have a general question and answer session. As set out in the information circular, there are four items for approval at today's meeting. They are the election of directors, the appointment of auditors, the authorization for the directors to establish the auditors' fees, and an advisory vote on executive compensation. May I now have a motion regarding these four items?
Madam Chair, my name is Tina Whynot, and I am a shareholder of the company. I move that, one, the nominees as settled on the ballot and on pages 7 to 18 of the management information circular be elected as directors of the company until the next annual meeting or until their successors are elected or appointed. Two, Ernst & Young LLP Chartered Accountants be appointed auditors of the company to hold office until the close of the next annual meeting of the shareholders or until their successors are appointed. Three, the directors of the company be authorized to establish the auditor's fee for the current year in such amounts as they may in their discretion determine. Four, the resolution as set out on the ballot and on page 4 of the management information circular regarding the company's approach to executive compensation is approved.
Thank you, Tina. Is there a seconder regarding the four motions, please?
Madam Chair, my name is John McNamara. I'm a shareholder of the company, and I second all four motions.
Thank you, John. Tina is an executive assistant with Emera, and John is the business systems analyst supporting Emera Energy. Is there any discussion from our shareholders here in the room on any of the four items? Is there any discussion from shareholders on the conference call on any of these items?
And if you'd like to ask a question over the phone, you may press star one on your telephone keypad.
Finally, have we received any email comments on any of the items?
Madam Chair, we have not received any questions or comments via email on this motion.
Thank you. Please take a moment to mark your ballot for the four items. Please pass your completed ballots to the end of the row and they will be collected and counted by CST Trust, along with the votes submitted by proxy prior to the meeting. We'll now wait a moment to allow the ballots to be collected. A little hard to see. While the scrutineers are tabulating the votes, Emera's President and Chief Executive Officer, Chris Huskisson, will say a few words, followed by Scott Balfour, Emera's Chief Operating Officer.
Well, thank you, Jackie, and good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to Emera's 2017 Annual General Meeting. I want to acknowledge today that there are a number of employees and also retirees in the audience. They've been very supportive of us over the years, and I just wanted to thank them for coming. There's also one person in the audience I wanted to especially acknowledge, and that's a former President and CEO of Nova Scotia Power, Louis Comeau. I'm told by Louis that this is. Yeah, he's probably not happy I did that. I'm told by Louis that this is the first meeting he's been to since he stepped down. Anyway, thank you for coming, Louis. We're very pleased to be here at Dalhousie University. In fact, the university is the center of a rebirth of the Nova Scotia economy, and especially the startup ecosystem.
We're very proud to also be participating in that rebirth. As Jackie shared earlier, I walked through the doors of Nova Scotia Power back in 1977. I was excited to join NSP because it meant I could build my career here in Nova Scotia, and that was something at that early age that was very important to me, as it is today and has been. I've been fortunate to spend nearly 40 years, boy oh boy, 40 years, a long time, 40 years doing something that I love in this very special place. The transformation that this company has seen over those years has been very significant. Today, more than 70% of our business is located outside of Canada, but our roots run deep here in Nova Scotia.
When our strategy began in 2005, we had assets valued at almost CAD 4 billion, and today we have close to CAD 30 billion in assets. Last year's $10.5 billion transaction for TECO Energy essentially doubled our size and added three new very important businesses, Tampa Electric, Peoples Gas, and New Mexico Gas. They position us well for continued growth, providing new platforms as we focus on transitioning from high to low carbon in the diverse markets that we're privileged to serve. As you know, I notified the board in March that I intend to retire in 2018. It was not an easy decision, but it's one that I made with tremendous confidence. That's because the company is ready, I think the team is ready, and it's the right time.
Over the past five years, Emera has delivered an annualized total shareholder return of 11%, far outpacing both the S&P Cap Utilities Index and the TSX Composite Index. What that means is if you invested CAD 100 in Emera in 2011, at the end of the year, you had CAD 169. Our commitment to growing our dividend resulted in our shareholders receiving 20% more cash in 2016, with our dividends set at CAD 2.09 per share. I'm extremely proud of the growth that Emera has had, and I'd like to share with you a video that captures what our growth has allowed us to do in the communities we serve.
Every moment of every day, we count on energy in the places we live and the places we work. At Emera, we're always working to ensure our customers have the energy they need. Energy that's safe, reliable, and affordable. Energy that's cleaner, helping to sustain our communities and our environment. That's why we're working to meet our customers' demand for cleaner, affordable energy. We're achieving our strategy by generating cleaner energy from renewables like wind, solar, hydro, and tidal. By building transmission to bring cleaner energy to our customers. Investing in natural gas as a cleaner transition fuel. Our utilities are working to serve our customers in better ways every day. From our roots as a single electrical utility in Nova Scotia, Emera has grown in Canada, the U.S., and the Caribbean.
Our investments now include electrical and natural gas utilities, natural gas pipelines, independent power producers, energy marketing and trading, and utility services. Our strategy has served us well for more than a decade, and it continues to work today, making us a North American energy leader. We are proud of how far we have come, and we're excited about what our momentum allows us to do for the places we serve. As we grow, we increase our ability to make energy cleaner, an important change that's meeting the global climate challenge and customer demand. We grow as innovators, developing and adopting new energy technologies and solutions for the benefit of our customers. We connect different parts of our business to create solutions. Cleaner energy is core to our strategy and our environmental commitment, which includes protecting and sustaining the places we work.
Our growth also means we can invest in our communities, supporting partners that foster innovation and inspire new ideas.
We are very proud to have partners like Emera that help us deliver our programs, help us generate leading research, and provide support for our students.
I would personally like to thank Emera Nova Scotia Power for their generous gift to the Discovery Centre. Not only to the Centre but to future generations of Nova Scotians. This Discovery Centre would not be happening without you.
Thank you to you, to Chris, to your colleagues, to the board of Emera, for pushing us, for pushing Dal, for pushing all of our partners to think bigger. To define a project to make even a bigger transformational difference for this region.
We are making a difference, and we're proud of how this is being recognized. Emera's growth and results are driven by our employees. Our people share a common purpose to deliver for our customers and create value for our shareholders. Our team believes in the importance of safety and health, building relationships, and finding ways to collaborate. We're committed to a bright energy future for the places we serve because these are our communities too. We live here. We power here. We grow here.
Well, as you can see, we're very proud of some of the things we've been able to do for shareholders, for our customers, and for our communities. It's something that our whole team is very proud of. One thing I should say, the project that we're working on right now in the Cabot Strait is within a few kilometers of bringing the cable to shore. We're very happy to see that happen. As you saw in the video, we're investing millions to support research, innovation, and economic development across our businesses. Here in Nova Scotia, our growth has also allowed us to invest CAD 10 million in the Dalhousie IDEA Project. Our commitment will help fund an advanced engineering incubator that will equip students with the creative and entrepreneurial skills that they need for the future. When our communities prosper, our business will prosper.
It's partnerships like these that are so important to Emera as we bring our business and our communities together for mutual growth. The strength of the company is the result of the incredible team at Emera. Thank you to each and every team member. The company is in great shape and has a bright future. I want to congratulate Scott for having been selected by the board to be our next CEO. Having had the opportunity to work closely with him during his time at Emera, I know the strong leadership skills and the perspective he brings will continue to serve Emera and the team very well. Congratulations, Scott. I want to thank our board of directors for their advice and ongoing support. It's been my pleasure to serve with you all. Thank you. I'm confident in Emera's future.
We have the right strategy, the right team, an unwavering commitment to delivering for our customers, our shareholders, and our communities. Now I'd like to invite Scott to come up and say a few words.
Thank you, Chris. I really appreciate your kind words and your confidence. I remember the first time I met Chris back in 2011. It was technically a first interview to discuss the prospect of me joining Emera as Chief Financial Officer. Ahead of that meeting, I wondered about all the things you wonder about when you're considering a new opportunity. Was this the right place for me? Would it be a good fit? I also remember that I decided to wear a suit that day but skip the tie. Now, perhaps a little unconventional or risky given the context of an interview, but not wearing a tie is a pretty common thing for me, as some of my colleagues would attest. Clearly, an AGM is an exception. Any doubts I had about the tie and about whether Emera would be a good fit faded very quickly.
As those of you who know Chris well, you might have guessed that Chris wasn't wearing a tie that day either. In fact, he was in jeans. I remember Chris spoke about the business with a bold confidence that was compelling, and he spoke with pride about Emera and about Nova Scotia. Needless to say, I was sold, and I'm so glad that I was and that my wife, Stella, and I, and our three boys have made Nova Scotia our home. Over the past five years as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, I've had the opportunity to witness firsthand what the Emera team is capable of accomplishing, and it is nothing short of impressive. Let me walk you through a quick update of what the team has been up to over the past year.
Here in Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Power has undergone the most rapid transition to renewable energy of any in Canada, tripling its renewable generation in just 10 years. Just two weeks ago, NSP announced that 28% of the electricity used by Nova Scotians in 2016 came from renewable resources, exceeding the legislative requirement of 25%. Nova Scotia Power has also integrated proportionally more wind on the system than in any other place in Canada. Of course, we'll be harnessing the benefits of tidal and hydro energy through the Cape Sharp Tidal and Maritime Link project. The Maritime Link is an incredible engineering project that will enable more than 40% renewable energy generation in Nova Scotia by 2020. This CAD 1.6 billion project is on budget and on track to be complete by the end of the year.
Two submarine cables, each of them 170 km long, are now being installed in the depths of the Cabot Strait between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. As Chris referenced, the first cable is now about 10 km away from completing that first stretch. With Cape Sharp Tidal, we're now testing new technology right here in Nova Scotia. We're gathering important environmental and tidal energy data, driving innovation, and helping to build a tidal industry in our region that will generate future economic growth. Our proposed Atlantic Link project could deliver 900 MW of clean energy from northern Maine and Atlantic Canada directly to southern Massachusetts, and open an immense market for emissions-free energy through a 560-km subsea cable. In Barbados, we built the first large-scale solar operation in the Caribbean. The St. Lucy Solar.
Lucy Solar facility produces enough electricity to displace 70,000 barrels of oil, which saves enough money for customers to pay for the project in only four and a half years. This is a perfect example of the fuel to assets element of our strategy. Our vision is for the island of Barbados to be fully electrified before 2045. That means Barbados will run entirely on electricity generated from clean sources of energy. In Florida, we recently had the ribbon cutting of our Big Bend solar array, a 23-MW facility that is one of the most advanced solar installations in Florida. The array has more than 200,000 solar panels that track the sun, giving them the ability to produce about 30% more energy than from fixed panels. In New Mexico and Florida, we're investing in natural gas as a transition fuel to cleaner energy.
Tampa Electric has also recently completed an expansion of its Polk Power Station. This $656 million project expanded the plant to now power up to 250,000 homes. New Mexico Gas has completed a $26 million expansion in the gas transmission system. In Maine, Nova Scotia, and Barbados, we're integrating electric vehicles and working with world-class leaders like Tesla to test the use of battery storage that will make intermittent renewable energy an even more reliable source of generation. While our geography and operations may be different, there are some things that are the same right across the business. We have a goal at Emera to attain world-class safety, and the team is fiercely committed to working and living safety every single day. This is a company filled with people who are passionate about what they do. They're creative and bold in delivering on our strategy.
All of this is balanced with a deep understanding of our business and the risks inherent in what we do every day. Our approach to balancing between aggressive goals and managing risk is what I think really sets Emera apart. We also share a commitment to our strategy. In many ways, our strategy was ahead of its time. We've been focusing on delivering clean, affordable energy to our customers for over a decade, and here we are today and we still believe in this strategy. We're growing because our team is delivering every day. I know I speak for all of the leadership team and our employees when I say that Chris has been a driving force, pushing us to think big and execute with discipline. My vision for the company is to continue to capitalize on our strengths, our people, our strategy, our great platform for growth.
To continue to attract and retain the best and the brightest people in the industry, to keep thinking big, staying relentlessly focused on delivering value to our customers, and disciplined in our execution. In doing this, we'll continue to deliver strong returns to shareholders, returns that outpace our peers. Emera has been doing this for the better part of its existence, and from where we are positioned today, I am confident that we will continue to deliver, prosper, and grow. I'd like to thank Jackie and the board for trusting me to help guide Emera forward. I am honored and proud to have been chosen to succeed Chris when he retires. I'm excited about the opportunity ahead. The energy sector is changing rapidly, and so too are our customer expectations. It's exciting. It's exciting to me because I know that we're ready for it. Thank you.
Come to think of it, I think Chris was wearing jeans when he first met me, too. The good thing is, next year, he can wear jeans all the time. Thank you, Scott, and again, congratulations. The Secretary advises me that the voting results have now been received. Mr. Secretary.
Madam Chair, the scrutineers report that all items voted upon at the meeting have received more than the number of votes required, and therefore, all items are passed. The final voting results will also be posted online at cedar.com.
Thank you, Stephen Aftanas. In light of the results of the voting, I now declare each of the 12 nominees for director are duly elected. Ernst & Young LLP is appointed as auditors of the company. The directors are authorized to establish the auditor's fee for the current year, and the resolution regarding the company's approach to executive compensation is approved. Ladies and gentlemen, there being no further business to put before the meeting, I will entertain a motion to terminate the meeting.
Madam Chair, my name is Mary O'Reilly, and I am a shareholder of the company. I move that the meeting be terminated.
Thank you, Mary. Is there a seconder, please?
Madam Chair, my name is Drew Turner. I'm a shareholder of the company, and I second the motion.
Thank you, Drew. Mary is Emera's accounts payable team lead, and Drew is director of commercial power operations at Emera Energy. We will now vote by show of hands. All those in favor of the motion, please raise your hand. I think that's conclusive. Against the motion? The motion is carried. We will now proceed to the question and answer session. First, we will take comments and questions from shareholders here in the room, and then from shareholders on the conference call. Finally, from shareholders who have sent questions in by email. If you would like to pose a question in French, we do have a translator with us today. We ask that all shareholders with questions please give your full name and affirm that you are a shareholder or proxy holder of the company. I would ask Chris, who's really anxious to get to the podium.
to answer questions or direct them to any of the team members in the audience. Are there any questions at this time? Microphone number one first.
My name is Allen Lynch. I've been a shareholder since privatization of Nova Scotia Power. My name will probably cause some people's blood to run cold. I am an annoyed shareholder. I've had an issue with the company since 2010. When the company was privatized, my mother and I bought shares together, and the coding was that we had survivor's rights. When my mother died, the company wanted CAD 474 to remove her name from the shares. This wasn't right. I refused. We went back and forth. Then the amount changed, and it kept going up. Then there was bonding, and I offered to come and pick up the shares. No, that couldn't happen. It had to be done by this. It's a long, complicated story which I have put into many letters. I wrote Computershare, Chair, several times and got no satisfaction. We spoke.
The people were nasty on a good day. Snotty is the way I would describe some of the attitude that I encountered, and so I adapted the golden rule as where it says, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," I did unto you as you did to me. I became a pain in the ass for people. I did it purposely. I wrote. I continued correspondence. I stopped having verbal conversations with people because of the way they were going. There was a lot of emails, and I believe in creating a paper trail. I first wrote Mr. Huskisson in August of 2011 to talk about the problem. Now, I understand. When somebody small like me contacts somebody who's running a multi-billion dollar company, you hand it off to somebody to handle. It wasn't handled.
I wrote again in February of 2012, March, May, June, July, on and on. In total, my last correspondence to you was last week, and my shares were returned to me this week, and a missing dividend payment. I have been trying to find out why dividend checks were not paid for five quarters. Now, I was dealing with a medical emergency. I didn't pay attention to what was coming in. Nobody ever explained to me why these checks were not paid. In fact, they turned the tables on us and said that we were bad shareholders, we were negligent shareholders, for them not paying us. Those were the nicer things that they said. To this day, I've never had an explanation for that. It went on. I also complained to Mr. Bennett. I copied to Mr. McLean. I started writing Mr.
Han, in total, I have written the executives of this company 33 times. That doesn't include the correspondence with the shareholder people, and I would get a regular form letter from them offering to deal with any questions I had and if I would phone the toll-free number. Since they sent me a form answer every year, I replied with my own form letter to them.
Thank you. I do think we understand, and I certainly understand your
Okay. I was just asked what would make me happy.
Yeah.
I think that there should be some contrition. One of the things that I think should happen is that the people that I became correspondents with should take the CAD 489.30 that I was asked to pay unfairly, and which I haven't passed, and for each of them to make a donation to Feed Nova Scotia as a good example, and use it from their funds and not our money. Thank you.
Well, I'm really sorry about that. I actually don't understand because there are processes for handling these things, and perhaps, Stephen, we can take this offline, and hopefully you'll be happy next annual meeting. Okay. We'll take it offline for sure. Microphone number two.
Andrew Chignell, Shareholder. Myself and my spouse, back a few months ago, purchased a plug-in hybrid vehicle because we can't rely necessarily on electricity to travel the distances we want to. We live in Lunenburg County, so we're somewhat challenged in terms of plugging into various commercial and private areas outside of our own home. I'm wondering if Emera's various utilities are working strategically or have strategic plans in place with both public or government organizations, as well as the private sector, other private entities that might have common interests to develop specifically for my own purposes, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI, and then I'll worry more about beyond that. In terms of developing a good network of charge stations for my vehicle and obviously for the public as we see that trend moves, and as you see your company is committed to that trend as well.
Thank you. Chris, I think that's Scott?
Yes, I can tell you we are working with both federal and provincial governments to look to establish a charging system within the province. That's still a work in process for us, nothing yet ready to announce, but it is a very active file for us today.
My only other comment is the ones that do exist, and I quite frequently come to town and stay at the Westin as my preference, and they do have a charging station there. There's varying amounts around what they charge, and some of them are way more than if you were just purchasing gas, which is ludicrous. Certainly we believe in a fair return to everybody that's involved in these things, so we hope that somehow if we get involved in partnerships, that we standardize what is the charge for those individuals that choose to use those charging stations. Thank you.
Good point. Thank you.
I just would say one other thing. More generally, we think electric vehicles are a very important part of the future as we try to reduce the carbon intensity of the economy as a whole. We're doing a fair bit of work right now on looking at integrating vehicles into the electrical network, looking at things like vehicle to grid and those kinds of activities that will allow you ultimately to get more value out of your electric vehicle. If it's integrated into the electricity system, then you'll actually get some value back from the electricity system too. It's early days, but it will evolve that way.
Are there other questions? Got to give him a hard time in his last annual meeting. Spoke too soon.
Thanks, Jackie.
Bill Phillips is my name. I'm a shareholder. I have a comment I want to make, but first I want to say that I was a little disappointed with the comments that were made by the previous shareholder at this microphone, disappointed in the way that he has a problem, the resolution of which seems to be rather questionable. I, as another shareholder, would hope. As a matter of fact, I'm surprised that the story that he has told us about here has even arisen, at least some aspects of it. I'm hoping that this question that he has raised will be resolved in the interest of both the company, Emera, but particularly the shareholder with some of the background comments that he made about his experience in dealing with the problem.
Now, my question is, and I mentioned this to Chris, that I would ask it, is related to history. Back a few years ago, not too many years ago, seven, eight or nine, I think it was Emera Energy that consummated a purchase with Nalcor Energy, Newfoundland Crown Corporation, to take 150 MW off their 300-MW supply they have from Churchill Falls. We, Emera that is, we took that 150 MW and, I think, used it very profitably by selling it into, I believe, New York area. What I'm wondering about is that agreement still in effect? Are we still taking that 150 MW from Nalcor Energy's 300-MW supply?
That particular agreement has expired, and Nalcor is actually working pretty hard to actually do some of that work themselves. We are working right now, as we speak, with Nalcor to try to move some of their energy from the new projects and some of the activity that they're doing right now, try to move that into the New England market. We actually believe that the Atlantic Link will be a very important connection for Newfoundland and Labrador as they look at building more in the future.
Mm-hmm.
That's really the way that we're working with them today. I would say, though, Bill, your point about that particular project, is that it was really the first and the foundational relationship between Emera and Nalcor and allowed us to advance that relationship and ultimately get to where we did with Lower Churchill and Maritime Link. Some of that kind of early-stage activity is very important to growing our business over time.
Well, thanks for that, Chris. One thing that I would comment on, in the Maritime Link, it's my understanding that the link through Nova Scotia will eventually, whatever the time frame is, I don't know offhand, but I think I've seen it, but I can't recall what it was. Eventually, that transmission circuit in our province will become the property of a Crown corporation of Newfoundland. Am I right in that?
The Maritime Link itself will revert to Nalcor in the 36th year.
Right.
They'll be able to use that connection from that period forward. We would expect that particular connection probably has a 50 or so year life. There's probably about 15 years of its life that will actually revert to Nalcor, yes.
Yeah. That bothers me a bit as a Nova Scotian. I think if Newfoundlanders were in the same position, they'd have the same feelings that I have. It is unusual.
Yeah
for a Crown corporation, particularly an electric energy corporation, to be owning transmission circuits like this one will be in Nova Scotia. Anyhow, thanks very much.
Thank you. Well, you do have to remember that we're owning transmission circuits in Newfoundland as a result of this project. At the end of the day, the ownership isn't going to be as important as being able to use the circuit. Nova Scotia Power customers will still benefit from being able to use the equipment.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Could we now move to questions from our conference call? Conference operator, do we have any questions on the telephone? Oh, do we have a question here? It's microphone number two.
Hi. Louis Comeau. I remember I was CEO in 1983 to 1996, and the privatization took place in 1993. I started discussing that stuff way back in 1986, 1987. I remember in the late 1980s, Madam Chair, Resources came in with another vice president, and we were looking at succession and all things like that. They said, "There's this crazy guy from Shelburne, Chris." "There's this crazy guy from Shelburne, and he might be bright." "So maybe we should do something with him." We moved him around a bit. Chris, you've done a fantastic job. Thank you.
Well said.
Louis is a bit modest. He actually started the development processes that both the leadership development and also the values development in the company. That really was foundational from all the various things that happened.
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you, Louis. Good to see you. Do we have any calls from the conference line or questions?
Again, if you'd like to ask a question over the phone, you may press star one on your telephone keypad. I currently do not see any questions over the phone.
Thank you. Have we received any email questions?
Madam Chair, we have not received any email questions.
Great. Well, thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for coming out this afternoon, and I hope you'll join us, I think it's upstairs, for refreshments and to speak to your fellow shareholders and the management team. Have a good afternoon. Thank you.