Short-Term Debt And Liquidity

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2021

The liquidity needs of the Ameren Companies are typically supported through the use of available cash, drawings under committed credit agreements, commercial paper issuances, and, in the case of Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois, short-term affiliate borrowings. See Note 4 – Short-term Debt and Liquidity under Part II, Item 8, in the Form 10-K for a description of our indebtedness provisions and other covenants as well as a description of money pool arrangements.

Short-Term Borrowings

The Missouri Credit Agreement and the Illinois Credit Agreement are available to support issuances under Ameren (parent)’s, Ameren Missouri’s, and Ameren Illinois’ commercial paper programs, respectively, subject to borrowing sublimits, and the issuance of letters of credit. As of March 31, 2021, based on commercial paper outstanding and letters of credit issued under the Credit Agreements, along with cash and cash equivalents, the net liquidity available to Ameren (parent), Ameren Missouri, and Ameren Illinois, collectively, was $1.4 billion. The Ameren Companies were in compliance with the covenants in their Credit Agreements as of March 31, 2021. As of March 31, 2021, the ratios of consolidated indebtedness to consolidated total capitalization, calculated in accordance with the provisions of the Credit Agreements, were 57%, 49%, and 46% for Ameren, Ameren Missouri, and Ameren Illinois, respectively.

The following table presents commercial paper outstanding, net of issuance discounts, as of March 31, 2021, and December 31, 2020. There were no borrowings outstanding under the Credit Agreements as of March 31, 2021, or December 31, 2020.


	March 31, 2021		December 31, 2020
Ameren (parent)	$	362	$	490
Ameren Missouri	204		—
Ameren Illinois	323		—
Ameren consolidated	$	889	$	490

The following table summarizes the activity and relevant interest rates for Ameren (parent)’s, Ameren Missouri’s, and Ameren Illinois’ commercial paper issuances and borrowings under the Credit Agreements in the aggregate for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020:


	Ameren (parent)			Ameren Missouri				Ameren Illinois			Ameren Consolidated
2021
Average daily amount outstanding	$	454		$	99			$	96		$	649

Weighted-average interest rate	0.25		%	0.22		%		0.21		%	0.24		%
Peak amount outstanding during period(a)	$	650		$	206			$	353		$	916
Peak interest rate	0.33		%	0.25		%		0.25		%	0.33		%
2020
Average daily amount outstanding	$	157		$	395			$	76		$	628

Weighted-average interest rate	1.94		%	1.86		%		1.99		%	1.89		%
Peak amount outstanding during period(a)	$	425		$	573			$	150		$	908
Peak interest rate	3.30		%	5.05		%	(b)	3.40		%	5.05		%	(b)

(a)The timing of peak outstanding commercial paper issuances and borrowings under the Credit Agreements varies by company. Therefore, the sum of individual company peak amounts may not equal the Ameren consolidated peak for the period.

(b)Ameren’s and Ameren Missouri’s peak interest rate was affected by temporary disruptions in the commercial paper market in the first quarter of 2020.

Money Pools

Ameren has money pool agreements with and among its subsidiaries to coordinate and provide for certain short-term cash and working capital requirements. The average interest rate for borrowings under the utility money pool for the three months ended March 31, 2021, was 0.22% (2020 – 1.93%). See Note 8 – Related-party Transactions for the amount of interest income and expense from the utility money pool arrangements recorded by Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020.