•
business and economic conditions, which have been affected by, and will be affected by the length and severity of, the COVID-19 pandemic, including the impact of such conditions on interest rates;
•
disruptions of the capital markets, deterioration in our credit metrics, or other events that may have an adverse effect on the cost or availability of capital, including short-term credit and liquidity;
•
the actions of credit rating agencies and the effects of such actions, including any impacts on our credit ratings that may result from the economic conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic;
•
the inability of our counterparties to meet their obligations with respect to contracts, credit agreements, and financial instruments;
•
the impact of weather conditions and other natural phenomena on us and our customers, including the impact of system outages;
•
the construction, installation, performance, and cost recovery of transmission and distribution assets;
•
the effects of failures of electric and natural gas transmission or distribution, or natural gas storage facilities systems and equipment, which could result in unanticipated liabilities or unplanned outages;
•
the impact of current environmental laws and new, more stringent, or changing requirements that could increase our operating costs or investment requirements, result in an impairment of our assets, cause us to sell our assets, reduce our customers’ demand for electricity or natural gas, or otherwise have a negative financial effect;
•
the impact of complying with renewable energy and zero emission standards in Illinois;
•
advancements in carbon-free generation and storage technologies and constructive federal and state energy and economic policies with respect to those technologies;
•
labor disputes, work force reductions, changes in future wage and employee benefits costs, including those resulting from changes in discount rates, mortality tables, returns on benefit plan assets, and other assumptions;
•
the impact of negative opinions of us or our utility services that our customers, investors, legislators, or regulators may have or develop, which could result from a variety of factors, including failures in system reliability, failure to implement our investment plans or to protect sensitive customer information, increases in rates, negative media coverage, or concerns about environmental, social, and/or governance practices;
•
the impact of adopting new accounting guidance;
•
the effects of strategic initiatives, including mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures;
•
legal and administrative proceedings; and
•
acts of sabotage, war, terrorism, or other intentionally disruptive acts.
New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all of such factors, nor can it assess the impact of each such factor on the business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained or implied in any forward-looking statement. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements. Except to the extent required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future events.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We have filed a registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC under the Securities Act of 1933. This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus are part of the registration statement, but the registration statement also contains or incorporates by reference additional information and exhibits. We are subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and, therefore, we file annual, quarterly and current reports, information statements and other information with the SEC. The SEC