(Poughkeepsie, NY) CH Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:CHG) today reported first-quarter earnings of $1.08 per share, 22 cents per share lower than the same period of the prior year, when earnings totaled $1.30 per share.

“Higher expenses associated with restoration of electric and natural gas service during an unusually harsh winter, accelerated tree trimming, and a partial disallowance of deferred costs from a prior period had significant impacts on our first-quarter results.  Normalized for those unique items, first-quarter earnings per share would have totaled $1.31, an increase of 1 cent per share as compared to the first three months of 2010,” said Chairman of the Board, President and C.E.O. Steven V. Lant.

“Despite lower first-quarter earnings per share, we expect our core earnings per share for the calendar year in 2011 will be higher than those of 2010, even after excluding the one-time impairment charges that we took last year,” he said.

CH Energy Group released the following quarterly results by business unit:

Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation
Central Hudson posted first-quarter earnings of 79 cents per share, as compared to $1.04 during the first quarter of 2010. The most significant drivers of the 25-cent difference were accelerated tree trimming expenses during 2011, (12 cents) per share; higher expenses associated with restoring service after electric and natural gas emergencies, (12 cents) per share, including the one-time accounting impact of a regulatory decision regarding expenses associated with February 2010 snowstorms; higher taxes, (8 cents) per share; and higher depreciation, (3 cents) per share. These unfavorable variables were somewhat offset by higher delivery revenues of 10 cents per share and higher carrying charges of 3 cents per share.

Lant explained that Central Hudson’s dampened results were not unexpected, in that increased amounts of tree trimming, in particular, had been advanced into the first quarter in order to take advantage of contracted savings opportunities and work conditions. He also noted that both the $2.1 million of incremental costs associated with a March ice storm and a decision by the New York State Public Service Commission to disallow the recovery of certain expenses associated with February 2010 snowstorms had a 3-cents-per-share one-time, negative impact on the quarter.           

Griffith Energy Services
            Griffith Energy Services posted earnings of 28 cents per share during the first quarter, up 2 cents per share from the 26 cents per share reported for the first three months of last year. Higher margins and reduced expenses more than offset reduced volumes.

“We are very encouraged by the progress we are making at Griffith in our ‘tuck-in’ acquisition efforts, as well as the trends that we are seeing in customer loyalty and service profitability,” said Lant. “All in all, we’re pleased with the changes we’ve made at Griffith in the last few years, and we believe in the underlying performance capability of this unit.”         

Other Businesses and Investments
            CH Energy Group’s other businesses and investments contributed 1 cent in earnings, a 1-cent improvement in performance from the first quarter of 2010.

“We are in the process of executing a change in strategic direction, announced late in 2010, to transition toward becoming exclusively an energy delivery company,” said Lant. “We are progressing on the divestiture of our renewable energy assets, and as a result incurred 4 cents of expense associated with divestiture activity during the first quarter. We’re confident that this change in direction will be in the best interest of shareholders in the long term.”

About CH Energy Group, Inc.: CH Energy Group, Inc. is predominantly a regulated transmission and distribution utility, headquartered in Poughkeepsie, NY. Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporationserves approximately 300,000 electric and about 74,000 natural gas customers in eight counties of New York State’s Mid-Hudson River Valley, delivering natural gas and electricity in a 2,600-square-mile service territory that extends north from the suburbs of metropolitan New York City to the Capital District at Albany.  CH Energy Group also operates Central Hudson Enterprises Corporation (CHEC), a non-regulated subsidiary composed primarily of Griffith Energy Services, which supplies energy products and services to approximately 57,000 customers in the Mid Atlantic Region, as well as several renewable energy investments.

Click here for CH Energy Group 2011 1st Quarter Financial Statements

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Conference Call:  Mr. Lant will conduct a conference call with investors to review financial results at 2:00 p.m. (ET) today, April 28, 2011. Dial-in: 1-800-288-8960; Conference Name “CH Energy Group.” Supplemental materials will be posted to the Company’s Web site at www.CHEnergyGroup.com to assist participants in following the Conference Call presentation.  A digitized replay of the call will be available from 4:30 p.m. (ET) on April 28, 2011, until 11:59 p.m. on May 5, 2011, by dialing 1‑800-475-6701 and entering access code 200772. In addition, the call will be webcast live in listen-only mode and available for replay for approximately 30 days within the Investor Relations section of the Company’s Web site at www.CHEnergyGroup.com

Forward-Looking Statements –
Statements included in this news release  and any documents incorporated by reference which are not historical in nature are intended to be, and are hereby identified as, “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the safe harbor provided by Section 21E of the Exchange Act.  Forward-looking statements may be identified by words including “anticipates,” “intends,” “estimates,” “believes,” “projects,” “expects,” “plans,” “assumes,” “seeks,” and similar expressions.  Forward-looking statements including, without limitation, those relating to CH Energy Group’s and Central Hudson’s future business prospects, revenues, proceeds, working capital, investment valuations, liquidity, income, and margins, are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements, due to several important factors, including those identified from time-to-time in the forward-looking statements.  Those factors include, but are not limited to: deviations from normal seasonal weather and storm activity; fuel prices; plant capacity factors; energy supply and demand; potential future acquisitions; the ability of the Company to divest non-core assets at acceptable prices within expected time frames, legislative, regulatory, and competitive developments; interest rates; access to capital; market risks; electric and natural gas industry restructuring and cost recovery; the ability to obtain adequate and timely rate relief; changes in fuel supply or costs including future market prices for energy, capacity, and ancillary services; the success of strategies to satisfy electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, and propane requirements; the outcome of pending litigation and certain environmental matters, particularly the status of inactive hazardous waste disposal sites and waste site remediation requirements; and certain presently unknown or unforeseen factors, including, but not limited to, acts of terrorism.  CH Energy Group and Central Hudson undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.  
Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements.