Leverett cites safety performance, customer satisfaction, financial achievements and infrastructure improvements at WEC Energy Group annual meeting

MILWAUKEE, May 4, 2017

Safety and diversity

• OSHA-recordable incidents decreased by 17 percent and lost-time incidents by 11 percent from 2015.
• We Energies was recognized by the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Association of Minority Contractors for our leadership in minority business development in the Wisconsin construction industry.

Customer satisfaction and corporate citizenship

• The results of a national survey ranked WEC Energy Group electric utilities third in the nation for large customer satisfaction – a 4 percent increase over 2015.
• We Energies was honored nationally with an Outstanding Customer Reliability Experience Award and was named the most reliable utility in the Midwest for the sixth year in a row by an independent consulting firm.
• Corporate Responsibility Magazine ranked WEC Energy as one of the top 50 corporate citizens in the nation.

Financial strength, dividend growth and shareholder return

• The company reported record earnings per share in 2016.
• Our board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.52 per share earlier this year, which equates to an annual rate of $2.08 per share. This represents a compound annual dividend growth rate of 6.6 percent from the 2015 fourth-quarter level.
• WEC's total return to shareholders outperformed the S&P Electric Index and the Philadelphia Utility Index in 2016.

Infrastructure improvements

• Wisconsin Public Service continued progress on converting overhead facilities to underground and adding automation equipment to improve system reliability in the northern region of its service territory.
• The long-term Peoples Gas System Modernization Program to replace approximately 2,000 miles of aging pipelines in Chicago is more than 20 percent complete.
• Construction of the new powerhouse was completed on time and on budget at the company's Twin Falls hydroelectric plant on the Menominee River between Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The new powerhouse has increased the plant capacity by 50 percent.

Formation of Upper Michigan Energy Resources Corporation

• The Michigan Public Service Commission approved our request to create a stand-alone Michigan utility to serve customers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
• The new utility is helping to facilitate a future generation solution for the region.

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