HOLMDEL, N.J. - New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) hosted the company's Annual Shareowners Meeting today at the Robert B. Meyner Reception Center, and discussed the net financial earnings guidance for fiscal 2013 of $2.55 to $2.75 per share approved yesterday by its Board of Directors. 

"This year, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of New Jersey Natural Gas, the 30th anniversary of New Jersey Resources, and the 30th anniversary of our listing on the New York Stock Exchange," said Laurence M. Downes, chairman and CEO. "But what stands out most are the timeless values and principles that drive our tireless dedication to meeting our customers' needs for safe and reliable service and our shareowners' expectations for consistent, long-term performance."      

During the meeting, shareowners re-elected to the NJR Board of Directors Lawrence R. Codey, Laurence M. Downes, Robert B. Evans, and Alfred C. Koeppe, each for three-year terms; and elected Sharon C. Taylor for a one-year term, and approved the non-binding advisory resolution approving the compensation of the company's named executive officers. Additionally, the appointment of Deloitte & Touche, LLP as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2013 was ratified.  Shareowners also re-approved the material terms of the performance goals under the NJR 2007 Stock Award and Incentive Plan, pursuant to Section 162 (m) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Shareowners also recognized the efforts of the company's employees in responding to the damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. 

"Our response to Superstorm Sandy is a reflection of the dedication and contributions of our entire team," Downes said. "From our engineers and field crews, who developed and implemented our restoration plan, to our customer service representatives and employee volunteers, who were there for our customers and lent a helping hand wherever it was needed-they are the reason we've been able to achieve all that we have."   

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. NJR cautions readers that the assumptions forming the basis for forward-looking statements include many factors that are beyond NJR's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as estimates of future market conditions and the behavior of other market participants. Other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the company's expectations include, but are not limited to, weather and economic conditions; demographic changes in NJNG's service territory and their effect on NJNG customer growth; volatility of natural gas and other commodity prices and their impact on NJNG customer usage, NJNG's BGSS incentive programs, NJRES' operations and on NJR's risk management efforts; changes in rating agency requirements and/or credit ratings and their effect on availability and cost of capital to NJR; the impact of volatility in the credit markets; the ability to comply with debt covenants; the impact to the asset values and resulting higher costs and funding obligations of NJR's pension and postemployment benefit plans as a result of downturns in the financial markets, and impacts associated with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; accounting effects and other risks associated with hedging activities and use of derivatives contracts; commercial and wholesale credit risks, including the availability of creditworthy customers and counterparties, liquidity in the wholesale energy trading market; the ability to obtain governmental approvals and/or financing for the construction, development and operation of certain non-regulated energy investments; risks associated with the management of NJR's joint ventures and partnerships; risks associated with our investments in renewable energy projects and our investment in an onshore wind developer, including the availability of regulatory and tax incentives, logistical risks and potential delays related to construction, permitting, regulatory approvals and electric grid interconnection, the availability of viable projects, NJR's eligibility for ITCs, the future market for Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SRECs) the potential expiration of the production tax credits (PTCs) and operational risks related to projects in service; timing of qualifying for ITCs due to delays or failures to complete planned solar energy projects and the resulting effect on our effective tax rate and earnings; the level and rate at which NJNG's costs and expenses (including those related to restoration efforts resulting from Superstorm Sandy) are incurred and the extent to which they are allowed to be recovered from customers through the regulatory process; access to adequate supplies of natural gas and dependence on third-party storage and transportation facilities for natural gas supply; operating risks incidental to handling, storing, transporting and providing customers with natural gas; risks related to our employee workforce; the regulatory and pricing policies of federal and state regulatory agencies; the possible expiration of NJNG's Conservation Incentive Program (CIP), the costs of compliance with the proposed regulatory framework for over-the-counter derivatives; the costs of compliance with present and future environmental laws, including potential climate change-related legislation; risks related to changes in accounting standards; the disallowance of recovery of environmental-related expenditures and other regulatory changes; environmental-related and other litigation and other uncertainties; and the impact of natural disasters, terrorist activities, and other extreme events on our operations and customers, including any impacts to utility gross margin, and restoration costs resulting from Superstorm Sandy. NJR does not, by including this paragraph, assume any obligation to review or revise any particular forward-looking statement referenced herein in light of future events. More detailed information about these factors is set forth under the heading "Risk Factors" in NJR's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) including its most recent Form 10-K.

Non-GAAP Financial Information
This press release includes the non-GAAP measure net financial earnings as an indicator of the company's operating performance, net financial earnings should not be considered an alternative to, or more meaningful than, operating income as determined in accordance with GAAP.

Net financial earnings excludes unrealized gains or losses on derivative instruments related to the company's unregulated subsidiaries and certain realized gains and losses on derivative instruments related to natural gas that has been placed into storage at NJRES. Volatility associated with the change in value of these financial and physical commodity contracts is reported in the income statement in the current period. In order to manage its business, NJR views its results without the impacts of the unrealized gains and losses, and certain realized gains and losses, caused by changes in value of these financial instruments and physical commodity contracts prior to the completion of the planned transaction because it shows changes in value currently as opposed to when the planned transaction ultimately is settled. Management uses this non-GAAP financial measure as a supplemental measure to other GAAP results to provide a more complete understanding of the company's performance. Management believes this non-GAAP measure is more reflective of the company's business model, provides transparency to investors and enables period-to-period comparability of financial performance. A reconciliation of all non-GAAP financial measures used by NJR to the most directly comparable financial measures calculated and reported in accordance with GAAP, can be found below. For a full discussion of NJR's non-GAAP financial measures, please see NJR's most recent Form 10-K, Item 7.

About New Jersey Resources
New Jersey Resources (NYSE: NJR) is a Fortune 1000 company that provides safe and reliable natural gas and renewable energy services, including transportation, distribution and asset management. With annual revenues of $3 billion, NJR is comprised of five key businesses:

  • New Jersey Natural Gas, NJR's principal subsidiary, operates and maintains 7,000 miles of natural gas transportation and distribution infrastructure to serve approximately half a million customers in New Jersey's Monmouth, Ocean and parts of Morris and Middlesex counties. 
  • NJR Clean Energy Ventures is a leading renewable energy company that invests in, owns and operates solar and onshore wind projects with a total capacity in excess of 42 megawatts, providing residential and commercial customers with low carbon solutions. 
  • NJR Energy Services manages a diversified portfolio of natural gas transportation and storage assets and provides customized energy solutions to its customers across North America. 
  • NJR Home Services is a premier provider of heating, central air conditioning, standby generators, solar and other indoor and outdoor comfort products to nearly 130,000 residential homes and businesses throughout New Jersey.
  • NJR Energy Holdings invests and maintains equity ownership in natural gas storage and transportation pipelines and serves companies from local distributors and producers to electric generators and wholesale marketers.

NJR and its more than 900 employees are committed to helping customers save energy and money by promoting conservation and encouraging efficiency through Conserve to Preserve® and initiatives such as The SAVEGREEN Project® and The Sunlight Advantage®.

For more information about NJR:
Visit www.njresources.com.
Follow us on Twitter @NJNaturalGas.
"Like" us at facebook.com/NewJerseyNaturalGas.
Download our free NJR investor relations app for iPad.

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