Enbridge (NYSE: ENB) reported Q4 EPS of $0.61, $0.17 better than the analyst estimate of $0.44.

"2019 was a successful year for Enbridge", commented Al Monaco, President and Chief Executive Officer of Enbridge. "Our low risk pipeline-utility model continued to deliver strong financial results and we advanced our strategic priorities on many fronts.

"Each of our core businesses delivered solid results in 2019 that translated into full-year DCF per share at the top-end of our guidance range. The Liquids Mainline System achieved record annual throughput, our gas pipelines were highly utilized, and we're capturing synergies through the amalgamation of our Ontario Utility businesses. In addition to strong business performance, we placed a further $9 billion of new projects into service, including the Canadian segment of the Line 3 Replacement. Our focus on optimizing our base business and executing on our secured growth program continues to drive highly predictable and growing cash flows, which resulted in exceptional annual dividend growth for our shareholders of 10% in 2019 and 9.8% in 2020.

"Despite strong utilization and financial performance across our businesses, we experienced a major incident on our natural gas system in Kentucky. The safety of our systems is always our number one priority and we're re-doubling our efforts to ensure our pipelines continue to be the safest in the industry.

"In the Liquids Pipeline segment, we delivered on our plan for 100 kbpd of throughput optimizations on the Mainline system by the end of 2019. We're planning for a further 50 kbpd of Mainline optimizations and we're moving forward with a 50 kbpd expansion of the Express Pipeline in 2020. These actions will provide WCSB producers with at least 200 kbpd of much needed additional pipeline capacity.

"On the U.S. portion of our Line 3 Replacement Project, on February 3 the MPUC approved the FEIS and reinstated the Certificate of Need and Route Permit. This important decision by the MPUC reflects the most comprehensive review of a pipeline project in Minnesota history and reaffirms the need for the pipeline to be replaced. We'll continue to work closely with State and Federal permitting agencies to secure all necessary permits prior to commencing construction.

"In addition, following almost two years of extensive negotiation with our shippers, we filed the Mainline Contract Offering with the Canada Energy Regulator (CER). The priority access offering is in direct response to what our shippers have asked us for and balances their diverse needs. Ultimately, contracting the Mainline will provide all shippers with priority access at competitive tolls, and supports further improvement in netbacks for WCSB producers. Most notably, it secures long-term demand for Canadian crude oil, while ensuring that all interested shippers can participate in a fair and transparent open season process. For example, we've made this offering accessible to smaller producers by reducing the minimum volume required to contract on the system and introducing a Requirements Contract with very attractive terms. We expect the CER will conduct a thorough review of our application which will include input from Enbridge and the industry. Importantly, we included in our application 13 letters from the shippers representing well over 70 percent of the Mainline volumes to demonstrate the support we have for the offering.

"We've also been advancing our liquids strategy to extend our integrated value chain from Western Canada down to the U.S. Gulf Coast. We're moving ahead with developing a terminal at Jones Creek, Texas, which will be fully integrated with our Seaway pipeline system and will provide connectivity and services to local refineries as well as export facilities. We've also secured an option to purchase an ownership interest in an offshore VLCC-capable oil export terminal, further advancing our energy export strategy in the U.S. Gulf Coast.

"Our Gas Transmission and Midstream business is awaiting a decision from the FERC on a settlement agreement on the Texas Eastern rate case and are entering rate proceedings on several other pipelines this year. These are important milestones as they will allow us to rebase our rates and set us up for recovery of future modernization costs.

"Also, in Gas Transmission and Midstream, we've again advanced our LNG supply strategy by leveraging our incumbent position in the U.S. Gulf Coast, with the announcement of the agreements to supply both the Annova LNG facility and the Rio Grande LNG facility, along with acquiring the Rio Bravo pipeline development project.

Finally, in the fourth quarter, we closed the second phase of the divestiture of our Canadian midstream assets, which completes our $8 billion asset sale program. These non-core asset sales have further strengthened our balance sheet and focused our business on our low risk pipeline-utility model.

"In summary, we're pleased with the Company's performance in 2019 and the successful completion of the 3-year plan we announced in early 2017 following the Spectra merger. As we look ahead to our new 3-year plan through 2022, our strategic priorities for the business remain focused on optimizing our base business, executing our secured growth program and growing the business through in-franchise, capital efficient investment. The combination of our strong financial position, disciplined capital allocation, and low-risk business model, positions us well to sustain attractive shareholder returns well into the future," concluded Mr. Monaco.

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