This transcript is designed to be used alongside the freely available audio recording on this page. Timestamps within the transcript are designed to help you navigate the audio should the corresponding text be unclear. The machine-assisted output provided is partly edited and is designed as a guide.:.

0:04 [Starts Abruptly] Despite the dramatic increase in customer counts as discussed by Paul, our first quarter firm volumes were negatively impacted by the 7% warmer-than-normal weather that the Roanoke experienced.

0:17 As shown on Slide 4, residential volumes declined by 8% and commercial volumes declined by 5% due to the much warmer December 2021. In fact, it was 32% lower heating degree days in that month compared to normal. Overall, industrial volumes were down, primarily, due to the large customer that fuel switched to natural gas in 2020.

Excluding this multi-fuel customer that switched its primary fuel from natural gas to coal, industrial volumes would have increased. 0:54 Transition to Slide 5 where we'll review our capital spending. Our capital spend during the first quarter of the current fiscal year is running slightly ahead of spending during the first quarter of fiscal 2021.

The majority of this spending has been on customer growth and system expansion, including our continued investment in the Blue Ridge project, as Paul just mentioned. Paul also talked about our miles of main extensions and new customers a few minutes ago.

In addition to these investments, we have spent approximately $1 million on a onetime gas supply infrastructure project. 1:31 Moving to Slide 6, where our condensed consolidated statements of income are shown. I'm going to separately review the financial results from our two operating segments, Roanoke Gas, our regulated utility and RGC Midstream.

I want to start with the first quarter results for Roanoke Gas. Operating income for the first quarter of fiscal 2020 showed a modest decline compared to the prior year's quarterly results.

Gross margins increased due to the SAVE rider and customer growth, which was offset by higher depreciation expense and receipt of CARES Act money in quarter one of fiscal year 2021. 2:12 Turning to RGC Midstream. Midstream continued with its significant quarterly year-over-year decline in equity and earnings from the Mountain Valley partnership.

Equity and earnings declined by over $1.2 million quarter-over-quarter. For the trailing 12 months, Roanoke Gas operating income increased by 12% year-over-year which is a testament to the outstanding performance by our utility subsidiaries Paul just discussed.

2:40 Specifically, the increased margin is largely attributable to our SAVE program revenues and customer growth which, as we discussed, added -- as we discussed in an earlier slide related to our main extensions and new customer adds.

The strong Roanoke Gas earnings were offset by a year-over-year $4.6 million decline in equity and earnings from Midstream's investment in the Mountain Valley pipeline, resulting in a $1.08 per share earnings on a consolidated basis compared to $1.38 for the prior 12 months.

3:15 I will now turn it back over to Paul, who will discuss the outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year..

It is the cleanest of all hydrocarbons, it's affordable, it's available and it provides long-term energy security. These things have not changed either. So despite the attacks on the pipeline and the attacks on the agencies that permit the pipeline, some of these macro big-picture items are, in fact, unchanged. 8:53 Let's move to Slide 10.

Our earnings guidance. This slide depicts the earnings from our two operating segments, as Tommy mentioned, the Roanoke Gas utility and RGC Midstream. I do want to note, Midstream's earnings for 2022 assume a level of noncash AFUDC that's commensurate with the resumption of MVP growth construction.

We have not changed that assumption from our earlier guidance as of today.

Again, as we just discussed a moment ago, we do not really have enough information at this point in time to change that guidance would, of course, refer you to our 10-Q and our disclosures about the project as well as our subsequent event footnote number 15 in the financial statement.

So at this time, our forecast for Roanoke Gas, the Roanoke Gas segment, 2022 earnings is unchanged as well. Okay. That concludes our prepared remarks..

10:15 Good morning..

10:24 Hey, Mike, good morning. How are you..

10:28 I'm good.

How about yourself?.

10:31 We are doing just fine. Thank you..

10:37 Yeah. I'm looking at the guidance, and I'm guessing that in terms of volumes, that you're going to see through rolling up gas for the heating season. You're still probably thinking that those are largely unchanged so that January offsets December.

Is that right?.

10:54 Yes, that's a good question. No December by heating degree day statistic was 32% warmer than normal and the volumes abnormally low for that month. In fact, Tommy, I think we looked at our most recent 30-year history. It was the second warmest December in that 30-year history.

So we were, as Tommy mentioned and the slide showed, Mike, we were off on volume, but January has been colder than normal by statistic. 11:30 And in fact, we've had a few very cold days. We never approached the single digits of low temperatures, but we had many, many days in the mid and upper teens, what we call good or great gas days.

So we're still closing the books for January, but we think and we know roughly what our delivered volumes are for January. They were quite strong. We believe -- and February has turned out to be cold so far as well. We'll see what the rest of the quarter holds..

12:09 Okay. Then one on Mountain Valley. The recent changes in terms of the court decision. They wouldn't keep them entirely out of the field, what -- I mean they can still go back into the fields and perform some work. I'm guessing that just has to do with the Jefferson National Forest.

Is that correct?.

12:29 Mike, I don't know the exact answer to that question right now. I think that's still being determined based on the biological opinion result as well, probably more to come on that from the joint venture as they know more..

12:52 Okay.

When would they typically be heading back into the field, April?.

Yes. So it depends on the weather. We've actually been very wet. We had a tremendous snow in the middle of January that is just now leaving the ground, and we had a lot of rain yesterday. So it's good old-fashioned winter weather, it's not conducive to construction.

So I think -- yes, I think a reasonable person would say they weren't going to be back in the field in the next few weeks. It would need to be a little bit dryer, a little bit better for conditions..

13:33 That's all I had, gentlemen. Thank you..

13:36 Well, thank you, Mike..

13:40 [Operator Instructions] If there are no more questions, this concludes the first quarter earnings call. Thank you for joining us, and we look forward to speaking with you again in May to discuss the second quarter. We hope you all have a safe and wonderful day. Thank you..