(Source: PRNewswire-FirstCall)
BREINIGSVILLE, Pa., April 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Buckeye Partners, L.P. ("Buckeye") today reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2009. Net income attributable to Buckeye's unitholders for the first quarter of 2009 was $53.8 million, or $0.87 per LP unit, compared with net income attributable to Buckeye's unitholders of $42.8 million, or $0.72 per LP unit, for the first quarter of 2008. Net income attributable to Buckeye's unitholders per LP unit in the first quarter of 2009 includes an increase in the average number of LP units outstanding during the first quarter of 2009 to 48.4 million from an average of 45.9 million LP units outstanding in the first quarter of 2008. In addition, earnings per LP unit for the first quarter of 2008 were retrospectively restated from $0.76 per LP unit shown last year as a result of the adoption, effective January 1, 2009, of a new accounting principle that changes the way Buckeye determines earnings per LP unit.
Revenue in the first quarter of 2009 was $416.8 million compared with revenue in the first quarter of 2008 of $380.3 million. Buckeye's Adjusted EBITDA (as defined below) for the quarter was $86.6 million compared to $72.6 million in the first quarter of the prior year. Operating income in the first quarter of 2009 was $70.1 million compared with operating income of $58.1 million in the first quarter of 2008.
The Board of Directors of Buckeye GP LLC, the general partner of Buckeye, declared a regular quarterly partnership cash distribution of $0.90 per LP unit, payable on May 29, 2009 to unitholders of record on May 11, 2009. This cash distribution represents a quarterly increase in the distribution of $0.0125 per LP unit and an annualized cash distribution level of $3.60 per LP unit. This is the 89th consecutive quarterly cash distribution paid by Buckeye.
Forrest E. Wylie, Chairman and CEO of Buckeye GP LLC, stated, "We are extremely pleased to report that, despite the overall weakness in the general economy, the first quarter of 2009 was another successful period for Buckeye. Our revenues, Adjusted EBITDA, operating income, and earnings all increased significantly relative to the first quarter of 2008, with particularly strong contributions from our largest operating segment, Pipeline Operations, and our two newest segments, Natural Gas Storage and Energy Services. Increased tariffs and effective cost management in our Pipeline Operations segment more than offset a modest 1% decline in transportation volumes in the first quarter of 2009 compared to the same period last year. Our Terminalling and Storage segment experienced lower earnings during the first quarter of 2009 largely due to lower settlement revenues driven by lower commodity pricing. We were encouraged to see product volumes in our Terminalling and Storage segment that essentially were flat compared to the same period in the prior year. Increased hub services revenues in our Natural Gas Storage segment also contributed to the increase in Adjusted EBITDA. Additionally, we are extremely pleased with the performance of our Energy Services segment, which benefited from higher volumes and improved margins in its refined petroleum product marketing business during the first quarter of 2009. As we previously announced, we successfully completed a public offering of 2.6 million LP units in March and an additional 390,000 LP units from the exercise of the underwriters' overallotment option, which further strengthened our financial position and improved our ability to take advantage of opportunities that may arise during the balance of 2009. Based on our overall financial performance in the first quarter, we are pleased to announce another increase in our quarterly cash distribution to unitholders."
Buckeye will host a conference call to discuss its financial results for the first quarter of 2009 on Friday, May 1, 2009, at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Investors are invited to listen to the conference call via the Internet, on either a live or replay basis, at: http://www.videonewswire.com/event.asp?id=57887. Interested parties may participate in the call by joining the conference at (888) 600-4861 and referencing conference ID 8577944. An audio replay of the conference call also will be available through May 6, 2009 by dialing (719) 457-0820 and referencing conference ID 8577944.
Buckeye Partners, L.P. (http://www.buckeye.com/) is a publicly traded partnership that owns and operates one of the largest independent refined petroleum products pipeline systems in the United States in terms of volumes delivered, with approximately 5,400 miles of pipeline. Buckeye Partners, L.P. also owns 64 refined petroleum products terminals, operates and maintains approximately 2,400 miles of pipeline under agreements with major oil and chemical companies, owns a major natural gas storage facility in northern California, and markets refined petroleum products in certain of the geographic areas served by its pipeline and terminal operations. The general partner of Buckeye Partners, L.P. is owned by Buckeye GP Holdings L.P. .
EBITDA, a measure not defined under generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), is defined by Buckeye as net income attributable to Buckeye's unitholders (excluding discontinued operations) before interest expense (including amortization and write-off of deferred debt financing costs), income taxes, depreciation, and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA, which also is a non-GAAP measure, is defined by Buckeye as EBITDA plus the difference between the estimated annual land lease expense for Buckeye's natural gas storage facility to be recorded under GAAP and the actual cash to be paid. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered alternatives to net income, operating profit, cash flow from operations or any other measure of financial performance presented in accordance with GAAP.
