By Robb M. Stewart

TransAlta affirmed annual guidance despite a fall in earnings in the first quarter as the utility faced softer Alberta power prices, reduced market volatility and overall lower production.

The company, one of Canada's largest publicly traded power generators, recorded net earnings of 13 million Canadian dollars (US$9.5 million), or C$0.04 a share, against C$46 million, or C$0.15, a year earlier.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization slipped to C$204 million from last year's C$270 million, adjusted to exclude certain items the company doesn't believe reflect continuing business performance. That missed the C$217 million mean forecast of analysts polled by FactSet.

TransAlta's revenue dropped 25% to C$565 million as production in the January to March period declined to 5,444 gigawatts hours from 6,832 the year before. Operational availability eased slightly to 93.8% for the period from 94.9% in the same period of 2025.

President and Chief Executive Joel Hunter said the company was confident its outlook for 2026. "While near-term headwinds in Alberta are materializing, the company's long-term opportunity set is vast," he said.

The Alberta-based utility--which owns a fleet of electrical power generation assets in Canada, the U.S. and Western Australia--said it affirmed a forecast for adjusted Ebitda this year of between C$950 million and C$1.05 billion, with free cash flows in a C$350 million to C$450 million range.

TransAlta in February finalized the acquisition of Far North Power for C$95 million from an affiliate of Hut 8, adding 310 megawatts of capacity from four natural gas-fired facilities in Ontario to increasing the company's total installed capacity in the province to 1,384 megawatts.

Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 06, 2026 07:33 ET (11:33 GMT)

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