Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said it has raised its long-term rating on the New York State Power Authority's (NYPA) $1.1 billion of senior debt to AA from AA-minus.
At the same time, Standard & Poor's raised its short-term rating on the authority's subordinate lien series 1-3 commercial paper (CP) and its series 1 extendible municipal CP (EMCP) notes to A-1-plus from A-1.
The CP and EMCP balance outstanding as of Dec. 31, 2013 was $554 million. Standard & Poor's also raised its ratings on NYPA's $106 million senior-lien 1985 adjustable-rate tender notes to AA/A-1 from AA-minus/A-1. The outlook is stable.
"The upgrade reflects our assessment of a track record of consistently strong 2009-2013 fixed charge coverage of at least 2.3x after adjustments for recurring transfer payments to New York State and capacity and tolling payments to other generation owners," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst David Bodek.
