Mr. Francois Poirier reports

TC ENERGY SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETES $5.3 BILLION SALE OF A 40 PER CENT NON-CONTROLLING EQUITY INTEREST IN COLUMBIA GAS AND COLUMBIA GULF

TC Energy Corp. has successfully completed the sale of a 40-per-cent non-controlling equity interest in its Columbia Gas Transmission LLC and Columbia Gulf Transmission LLC systems to Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for total cash proceeds of $5.3-billion ($3.9-billion (U.S.)).

"This sizable transaction is a tangible example of our team's focus on achieving one of our key 2023 strategic priorities of significantly advancing our deleveraging goals, ahead of our year-end target," said Francois Poirier, TC Energy's president and chief executive officer. "GIP is a strong and reputable strategic and financial partner that will help unlock incremental value on our Columbia gas systems."

Clear path toward deleveraging:

• Delivering more than $5-billion of cash proceeds in a single transaction is expected to reduce TC Energy's year-end 2023 debt to EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) leverage metric by over 0.4 times, a major step toward reaching its 2024 year-end objective of 4.75 times debt to EBITDA;
• Demonstrated strong continued access to capital markets in August, 2023, with Columbia Pipelines Holding Company LLC (CPHC) and Columbia Pipelines Operating Company LLC (CPOC) initially issuing in aggregate $5.6-billion (U.S.) of senior unsecured notes; additional indebtedness is expected to be incurred in 2024 to reach the intended run-rate capital structure; prior to the closing of the offerings, all $1.5-billion (U.S.) of existing Columbia Pipeline Group Inc. (CPG) senior notes were assumed by CPOC;
• The net proceeds from the offerings were used to repay existing intercompany indebtedness with TC Energy entities and will reduce the company's indebtedness or offset future debt issuance such that the offerings are expected to be leverage neutral to TC Energy on a consolidated basis;
• Continuing to evaluate an incremental $3-billion of capital rotation opportunities to achieve the company's desired debt to EBITDA target;
• Limiting sanctioned capital spending, net of partner contributions, to $6-billion to $7-billion annually after 2024.

Collectively, these actions are expected to enable TC Energy to continue strengthening its balance sheet and reinforce long-term, sustainable, annual dividend growth of 3 per cent to 5 per cent.

TC Energy will continue to operate the systems, focusing on maximizing value through safe operations, reliability of service and operational excellence. Going forward, GIP will finance its 40 per cent share of Columbia Gas and Columbia Gulf's gross capital expenditures. Total gross capital expenditures for these assets are expected to average more than $1.3-billion ($1-billion (U.S.)) annually over the next three years.

Transaction details

Columbia Pipeline Group contributed all of its equity interests in its wholly owned subsidiaries, Columbia Gas and Columbia Gulf, to a newly formed wholly owned entity, Columbia Pipelines Operating Company, which is directly held by a newly formed entity, Columbia Pipelines Holding Company. CPHC is the entity through which TC Energy and GIP hold their equity interests.

About TC Energy Corp.

TC Energy is a team of more than 7,000 energy problem solvers working to move, generate and store the energy North America relies on. Today, the company is taking action to make that energy more sustainable and more secure. The company is innovating and modernizing to reduce emissions from its business. Also, TC Energy is delivering new energy solutions -- from natural gas and renewables to carbon capture and hydrogen -- to help other businesses and industries decarbonize too. Along the way, the company invests in communities and partners with its neighbours, customers and governments to build the energy system of the future.

TC Energy's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TRP.

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