Borrowings and Other Financing Instruments Borrowings and Other Financing Instruments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Debt Disclosure [Abstract]

Borrowings and Other Financing Instruments

Short-Term Borrowings

Short-Term Debt — Xcel Energy meets its short-term liquidity requirements primarily through the issuance of commercial paper and borrowings under their credit facilities and term loan agreements.

Commercial paper and term loan borrowings outstanding:

(Millions of Dollars, Except Interest Rates)	Three Months Ended Dec. 31, 2019			Year Ended Dec. 31
				2019			2018			2017
Borrowing limit	$	3,600		$	3,600		$	3,250		$	3,250
Amount outstanding at period end	595			595			1,038			814
Average amount outstanding	663			1,115			788			644
Maximum amount outstanding	945			1,780			1,349			1,247
Weighted average interest rate, computed on a daily basis	2.40		%	2.72		%	2.34		%	1.35		%
Weighted average interest rate at end of period	2.34			2.34			2.97			1.90

Term Loan Agreement — In December 2019, Xcel Energy Inc. entered into a $500 million 364-Day Term Loan Agreement to pay down borrowings and terminate the expiring $500 million term loan made to Xcel Energy under the 364-Day Term Loan Agreement dated as of Dec. 4, 2018. The loan is unsecured and matures Dec. 1, 2020. Xcel Energy has an option to request an extension through Nov. 30, 2021. Term loan includes one financial covenant, requiring Xcel Energy’s consolidated funded debt to total capitalization ratio to be less than or equal to 65 percent. Interest is at a rate equal to either the Eurodollar rate, plus 50.0 basis points, or an alternate base rate.

Term loan borrowings as of Dec. 31, 2019:

(Millions of Dollars)	Limit		Amount Used		Available
Xcel Energy Inc.	$	500	$	500	$	—

Bilateral Credit Agreement — In March 2019, NSP-Minnesota entered into a one-year uncommitted bilateral credit agreement. The agreement is limited in use to support letters of credit.

As of Dec. 31, 2019, outstanding letters of credit under the Bilateral Credit Agreement were as follows:

(Millions of Dollars)	Limit		Amount Used		Available
NSP-Minnesota	$	75	$	22	$	53

Letters of Credit — Xcel Energy uses letters of credit, typically with terms of one year, to provide financial guarantees for certain operating obligations. As of Dec. 31, 2019 and 2018, there were $20 million and $49 million of letters of credit outstanding under the credit facilities. Amounts approximate their fair value.

Credit Facilities — In order to use commercial paper programs to fulfill short-term funding needs, Xcel Energy Inc. and its utility subsidiaries must have revolving credit facilities in place at least equal to the amount of their respective commercial paper borrowing limits and cannot issue commercial paper in an aggregate amount exceeding available capacity under these credit facilities. The lines of credit provide short-term financing in the form of notes payable to banks, letters of credit and back-up support for commercial paper borrowings.

Amended Credit Agreements — In June 2019, Xcel Energy Inc., NSP-Minnesota, NSP-Wisconsin, PSCo and SPS entered into amended five-year credit agreements with a syndicate of banks. The total borrowing limit under the amended credit agreements was increased to $3.1 billion, with the following changes:

• Maturity extended from June 2021 to June 2024;

• Borrowing limit for Xcel Energy was increased from $1.0 billion to $1.25 billion;

• Borrowing limit for SPS was increased from $400 million to $500 million; and

• Added swingline subfacility for Xcel Energy up to $75 million

Features of the credit facilities:

	Debt-to-Total Capitalization Ratio(a)				Amount Facility May Be Increased (millions)		Additional Periods for Which a One-Year Extension May Be Requested (b)
	2019		2018
Xcel Energy Inc. (c)	58	%	58	%	$	200	2
NSP-Wisconsin	48		48		N/A		1
NSP-Minnesota	48		48		100		2
SPS	46		46		50		2
PSCo	44		46		100		2

^(a)  Each credit facility has a financial covenant requiring that the debt-to-total capitalization ratio be less than or equal to 65%.

^(b)  All extension requests are subject to majority bank group approval.

^(c)   The Xcel Energy Inc. credit facility has a cross-default provision that Xcel Energy Inc. will be in default on its borrowings under the facility if it or any of its subsidiaries (except NSP-Wisconsin as long as its total assets do not comprise more than 15% of Xcel Energy’s consolidated total assets) default on indebtedness in an aggregate principal amount exceeding $75 million.

If Xcel Energy Inc. or its utility subsidiaries do not comply with the covenant, an event of default may be declared, and if not remedied, any outstanding amounts due under the facility can be declared due by the lender. As of Dec. 31, 2019, Xcel Energy Inc. and its subsidiaries were in compliance with all financial covenants.

Xcel Energy Inc. and its utility subsidiaries had the following committed credit facilities available as of Dec. 31, 2019:

(Millions of Dollars)	Credit Facility (a)		Drawn (b)		Available
Xcel Energy Inc.	$	1,250	$	—	$	1,250
PSCo	700		9		691
NSP-Minnesota	500		2		498
SPS	500		40		460
NSP-Wisconsin	150		65		85
Total	$	3,100	$	116	$	2,984

^(a)  These credit facilities mature in June 2024.

^(b)  Includes outstanding commercial paper and letters of credit.

All credit facility bank borrowings, outstanding letters of credit and outstanding commercial paper reduce the available capacity under the credit facilities. Xcel Energy Inc. and its subsidiaries had no direct advances on facilities outstanding as of Dec. 31, 2019 and 2018.

Long-Term Borrowings and Other Financing Instruments

Generally, all property of NSP-Minnesota, NSP-Wisconsin, PSCo and SPS are subject to the liens of their first mortgage indentures. Debt premiums, discounts and expenses are amortized over the life of the related debt. The premiums, discounts and expenses for refinanced debt are deferred and amortized over the life of the new issuance.

Long term debt obligations for Xcel Energy Inc. and its utility subsidiaries as of Dec. 31 (Millions of Dollars):

Xcel Energy Inc.
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate		Maturity Date	2019			2018
Unsecured senior notes (d)	4.70	%	May 15, 2020	$	—		$	550
Unsecured senior notes	2.40		March 15, 2021	400			400
Unsecured senior notes	2.60		March 15, 2022	300			300
Unsecured senior notes	3.30		June 1, 2025	250			250
Unsecured senior notes	3.30		June 1, 2025	350			350
Unsecured senior notes	3.35		Dec. 1, 2026	500			500
Unsecured senior notes (a)	4.00		June 15, 2028	130			—
Unsecured senior notes (b)	4.00		June 15, 2028	500			500
Unsecured senior notes (a)	2.60		Dec. 1, 2029	500			—
Unsecured senior notes	6.50		July 1, 2036	300			300
Unsecured senior notes	4.80		Sept. 15, 2041	250			250
Unsecured senior notes (a)	3.50		Dec. 1, 2049	500			—
Elimination of PSCo capital lease obligation with affiliates (c)				—			(60		)
Unamortized discount				(5		)	(5		)
Unamortized debt issuance cost				(28		)	(21		)
Current maturities (capital lease obligation) (c)				—			2
Total long-term debt				$	3,947		$	3,316

^(a)  2019 financing.

^(b)  2018 financing.

^(c)  Xcel Energy adopted ASC 842 on Jan. 1, 2019, which refers to capital leases as finance leases. Under ASC 842, the present value of future finance lease payments is included in other current liabilities and other noncurrent liabilities rather than debt.

^(d)  Note was redeemed on Dec. 23, 2019.

NSP-Minnesota
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate		Maturity Date	2019			2018
First mortgage bonds	2.20	%	Aug. 15, 2020	$	300		$	300
First mortgage bonds	2.15		Aug. 15, 2022	300			300
First mortgage bonds	2.60		May 15, 2023	400			400
First mortgage bonds	7.13		July 1, 2025	250			250
First mortgage bonds	6.50		March 1, 2028	150			150
First mortgage bonds	5.25		July 15, 2035	250			250
First mortgage bonds	6.25		June 1, 2036	400			400
First mortgage bonds	6.20		July 1, 2037	350			350
First mortgage bonds	5.35		Nov. 1, 2039	300			300
First mortgage bonds	4.85		Aug. 15, 2040	250			250
First mortgage bonds	3.40		Aug. 15, 2042	500			500
First mortgage bonds	4.13		May 15, 2044	300			300
First mortgage bonds	4.00		Aug. 15, 2045	300			300
First mortgage bonds	3.60		May 15, 2046	350			350
First mortgage bonds	3.60		Sept. 15, 2047	600			600
First mortgage bonds (a)	2.90		March 1, 2050	600			—
Unamortized discount				(31		)	(21		)
Unamortized debt issuance cost				(48		)	(42		)
Current maturities				(300		)	—
Total long-term debt				$	5,221		$	4,937

^(a)  2019 financing.

NSP-Wisconsin
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate		Maturity Date	2019			2018
City of La Crosse resource recovery bond	6.00	%	Nov 1, 2021	$	19		$	19
First mortgage bonds	3.30		June 15, 2024	100			100
First mortgage bonds	3.30		June 15, 2024	100			100
First mortgage bonds	6.38		Sept. 1, 2038	200			200
First mortgage bonds	3.70		Oct. 1, 2042	100			100
First mortgage bonds	3.75		Dec. 1, 2047	100			100
First mortgage bonds (a)	4.20		Sept. 1, 2048	200			200
Unamortized discount				(3		)	(3		)
Unamortized debt issuance cost				(8		)	(9		)
Total long-term debt				$	808		$	807

^(a)  2018 financing.

PSCo
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate		Maturity Date	2019			2018
First mortgage bonds (d)	5.13	%	June 1, 2019	$	—		$	400
First mortgage bonds	3.20		Nov. 15, 2020	400			400
First mortgage bonds	2.25		Sept. 15, 2022	300			300
First mortgage bonds	2.50		March 15, 2023	250			250
First mortgage bonds	2.90		May 15, 2025	250			250
First mortgage bonds (b)	3.70		June 15, 2028	350			350
First mortgage bonds	6.25		Sept. 1, 2037	350			350
First mortgage bonds	6.50		Aug. 1, 2038	300			300
First mortgage bonds	4.75		Aug. 15, 2041	250			250
First mortgage bonds	3.60		Sept. 15, 2042	500			500
First mortgage bonds	3.95		March 15, 2043	250			250
First mortgage bonds	4.30		March 15, 2044	300			300
First mortgage bonds	3.55		June 15, 2046	250			250
First mortgage bonds	3.80		June 15, 2047	400			400
First mortgage bonds (b)	4.10		June 15, 2048	350			350
First mortgage bonds (a)	4.05		Sept. 15, 2049	400			—
First mortgage bonds (a)	3.20		March 1, 2050	550			—
Capital lease obligations (c)	11.20 - 14.30		2025 - 2060	—			145
Unamortized discount				(24		)	(14		)
Unamortized debt issuance cost				(41		)	(33		)
Current maturities				(400		)	(406		)
Total long-term debt				$	4,985		$	4,592

^(a)  2019 financing.

^(b)  2018 financing.

^(c)  PSCo adopted ASC 842 on Jan. 1, 2019, which refers to capital leases as finance leases. Under ASC 842, the present value of future finance lease payments is included in other current liabilities and other noncurrent liabilities rather than debt.

^(d)  Bond was redeemed on March 29, 2019.

SPS
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate		Maturity Date	2019			2018
First mortgage bonds	3.30	%	June 15, 2024	$	150		$	150
First mortgage bonds	3.30		June 15, 2024	200			200
Unsecured senior notes	6.00		Oct. 1, 2033	100			100
Unsecured senior notes	6.00		Oct. 1, 2036	250			250
First mortgage bonds	4.50		Aug. 15, 2041	200			200
First mortgage bonds	4.50		Aug. 15, 2041	100			100
First mortgage bonds	4.50		Aug. 15, 2041	100			100
First mortgage bonds	3.40		Aug. 15, 2046	300			300
First mortgage bonds	3.70		Aug. 15, 2047	450			450
First mortgage bonds (b)	4.40		Nov. 15, 2048	300			300
First mortgage bonds (a)	3.75		June 15, 2049	300			—
Unamortized discount				(7		)	(4		)
Unamortized debt issuance cost				(23		)	(20		)
Total long-term debt				$	2,420		$	2,126

^(a)  2019 financing.

^(b)  2018 financing.

Other Subsidiaries
Financing Instrument	Interest Rate	Maturity Date	2019			2018
Various Eloigne affordable housing project notes	0.00% - 6.90%	2020 — 2052	$	28		$	26
Current maturities			(2		)	(1		)
Total long-term debt			$	26		$	25

Maturities of long-term debt:

(Millions of Dollars)
2020	$	702
2021	421
2022	900
2023	650
2024	552

Deferred Financing Costs — Deferred financing costs of approximately $148 million and $126 million, net of amortization, are presented as a deduction from the carrying amount of long-term debt as of Dec. 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Forward Equity Agreements — In November 2018, Xcel Energy Inc. entered into forward equity agreements in connection with a completed $459 million public offering of 9.4 million shares of Xcel Energy common stock. In August 2019, Xcel Energy settled the forward equity agreements by physically delivering 9.4 million shares of common equity for cash proceeds of $453 million.

In November 2019, Xcel Energy Inc. entered into forward equity agreements in connection with a completed $743 million public offering of 11.8 million shares of Xcel Energy common stock. The initial forward agreement was for 10.3 million shares with an additional agreement for 1.5 million shares exercised at the option of the banking counterparty.

At Dec. 31, 2019, the forward agreements could have been settled with physical delivery of 11.8 million common shares to the banking counterparty in exchange for cash of $739 million. The forward instruments could also have been settled at Dec. 31, 2019 with delivery of approximately $6 million of cash or approximately 0.1 million shares of common stock to the counterparty, if Xcel Energy unilaterally elected net cash or net share settlement, respectively.

The forward price used to determine amounts due at settlement is calculated based on the November 2019 public offering price for Xcel Energy’s common stock of $62.69, increased for the overnight bank funding rate, less a spread of 0.75% and less expected dividends on Xcel Energy’s common stock during the period the instruments are outstanding.

Xcel Energy may settle the agreements at any time up to the maturity date of Dec. 31, 2020. Depending on settlement timing, cash proceeds are expected to be approximately $730 million to $740 million.

Forward equity instruments were recognized within stockholders’ equity at fair value at execution of the agreements and will not be subsequently adjusted until settlement.

Other Equity — Xcel Energy issued $39 million of equity annually through the DRIP program during the years ended Dec. 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. Program allows stockholders to elect dividend reinvestment in Xcel Energy common stock through a non-cash transaction. See Note 8 for equity items related to share based compensation.

Capital Stock — Preferred stock authorized/outstanding:

	Preferred Stock Authorized (Shares)	Par Value of Preferred Stock		Preferred Stock Outstanding (Shares) 2019 and 2018
Xcel Energy Inc.	7,000,000	$	100	—
PSCo	10,000,000	0.01		—
SPS	10,000,000	1.00		—

Xcel Energy Inc. had the following common stock authorized/outstanding:

Common Stock Authorized (Shares)	Par Value of Common Stock		Common Stock Outstanding (Shares) as of Dec. 31, 2019	Common Stock Outstanding (Shares) as of Dec. 31, 2018
1,000,000,000	$	2.50	524,539,000	514,036,787

Dividend and Other Capital-Related Restrictions — Xcel Energy depends on its subsidiaries to pay dividends. Xcel Energy Inc.’s utility subsidiaries’ dividends are subject to the FERC’s jurisdiction, which prohibits the payment of dividends out of capital accounts. Dividends are solely to be paid from retained earnings. Certain covenants also require Xcel Energy Inc. to be current on interest payments prior to dividend disbursements.

State regulatory commissions impose dividend limitations for NSP-Minnesota, NSP-Wisconsin and SPS, which are more restrictive than those imposed by the FERC. Requirements and actuals as of Dec. 31, 2019:

	Equity to Total Capitalization Ratio Required Range				Equity to Total Capitalization Ratio Actual
	Low		High		2019
NSP-Minnesota	47.1	%	57.5	%	52.3	%
NSP-Wisconsin	51.5		N/A		51.8
SPS (a)	45.0		55.0		54.4

^(a)  Excludes short-term debt.

(Amounts in Millions)	Unrestricted Retained Earnings		Total Capitalization		Limit on Total Capitalization
NSP-Minnesota	$	1,147	$	11,634	$	12,700
NSP-Wisconsin (a)	12		1,827		N/A
SPS (b)	535		5,304		N/A

^(a)  Cannot pay annual dividends in excess of approximately $55 million if its average equity-to-total capitalization ratio falls below the commission authorized level.

^(b)  May not pay a dividend that would cause a loss of its investment grade bond rating.

Issuance of securities by Xcel Energy Inc. generally is not subject to regulatory approval. However, utility financings and intra-system financings are subject to the jurisdiction of state regulatory commissions and/or the FERC. Xcel Energy may seek additional authorization as necessary.

Amounts authorized to issue as of Dec. 31, 2019:

(Millions of Dollars)	Long-Term Debt			Short-Term Debt
NSP-Minnesota	52.93% of total capitalization		(a)	$	1,905	(a)
NSP-Wisconsin	$	—	(b)	150
SPS	—		(c)	600
PSCo	150			800

^(a)  NSP-Minnesota has authorization to issue long-term securities provided the equity-to-total capitalization remains within the required range, and to issue short-term debt provided it does not exceed 15% of total capitalization.

^(b)  NSP-Wisconsin filed for additional long-term debt authorization in December 2019.

^(c)  

SPS filed for additional long-term debt authorization in February 2020.