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Nature of business | 6 Months Ended
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Jun. 30, 2020
Nature of business |
Nature of business | 1. Nature of business ​ General ​ Atlantic Power is an independent power producer that owns power generation assets in eleven states in the United States and two provinces in Canada. Our power generation projects, which are diversified by geography, fuel type, dispatch profile and offtaker, sell electricity to utilities and other large customers predominantly under long-term power purchase agreements (“PPAs”), which seek to minimize exposure to changes in commodity prices. As of June 30, 2020, our portfolio consisted of twenty-one operating projects with an aggregate electric generating capacity of approximately 1,723 megawatts (“MW”) on a gross ownership basis and approximately 1,327 MW on a net ownership basis. Sixteen of the projects are majority-owned by the Company. ​ Atlantic Power is a corporation established under the laws of the Province of Ontario on June 18, 2004 and continued to the Province of British Columbia on July 8, 2005. Our shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) under the symbol “ATP” and on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “AT.” Our registered office is located at 1066 West Hastings Street, Suite 2600, Vancouver, British Columbia V6E 3X1, Canada and our headquarters is located at 3 Allied Drive, Suite 155, Dedham, Massachusetts 02026, USA. Our telephone number in Dedham is (617) 977-2400 and the address of our website is www.atlanticpower.com. Information contained on Atlantic Power’s website or that can be accessed through its website is not incorporated into and does not constitute a part of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. We have included our website address only as an inactive textual reference and do not intend it to be an active link to our website. ​ Basis of presentation ​ The interim condensed consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q have been prepared in accordance with the SEC regulations for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q. The following notes should be read in conjunction with the accounting policies and other disclosures as set forth in the notes to our financial statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for the full year. ​ In our opinion, the accompanying unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements present fairly our consolidated financial position as of June 30, 2020, the results of operations and comprehensive (loss) income for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019, and our cash flows for the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019, in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals and other adjustments) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. ​ Use of estimates ​ The preparation of financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the year. Actual results could differ from those estimates. During the periods presented, we have made a number of estimates and valuation assumptions, including the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in purchase accounting, the useful lives and recoverability of property, plant and equipment, valuation of goodwill, intangible assets and liabilities related to PPAs and fuel supply agreements, the recoverability of equity method investments, the recoverability of deferred tax assets, tax provisions, recovery of expected insurance proceeds, the fair value of financial instruments and derivatives, pension obligations, asset retirement obligations and equity-based compensation. In addition, estimates are used to test long-lived assets and goodwill for impairment and to determine the fair value of impaired assets. These estimates and valuation assumptions are based on present conditions and our planned course of action, as well as assumptions about future business and economic conditions. See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. As better information becomes available or actual amounts are determinable, the recorded estimates are revised. Should the underlying valuation assumptions and estimates change, the recorded amounts could change by a material amount. ​ COVID-19 Pandemic ​ There are many uncertainties regarding the ongoing coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic, and we are closely monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on all aspects of our business, including how it will impact our customers, employees, suppliers, vendors and business partners. We have taken extra precautions for our employees who continue to work at our facilities and have implemented work-from-home policies where appropriate. Currently, we do not anticipate any employee layoffs and are continuing to maintain our high level of reliability and availability of our plants. We continue to implement strong physical and cybersecurity measures to ensure that our systems remain functional in order to serve our operational needs with a remote workforce and to keep our operations running to ensure uninterrupted service to our offtakers. While COVID-19 did not materially adversely affect our financial results and business operations in the six months ended June 30, 2020, we are unable to predict the impact that COVID-19 will have on our financial position and operating results due to numerous uncertainties. We will continue to assess the evolving impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and intend to make adjustments accordingly. ​ Recently adopted and issued accounting standards ​ Accounting standards adopted ​ In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, “Financial Instruments-Credit Losses”(Topic 326), Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (“ASU 2016-13”). This guidance amends the guidance on measuring credit losses on financial assets held at amortized cost. ASU 2016-13 requires the measurement of all expected credit losses for financial assets held at the reporting date based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. This guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods within those fiscal years. We adopted ASU 2016-13 on January 1, 2020 and it did not have a material impact on the condensed consolidated financial statements. ​ In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, “Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurements” to modify the disclosure requirements on fair value measurement disclosures. The guidance requires removals of certain disclosures, such as the amount of and reasons for transfers between level 1 and level 2 of fair value hierarchy and the policy for timing of transfers between levels. The guidance further requires modifications and additions surrounding the disclosures of level 3 fair value measurements and related unrealized gains and losses. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2020 and it did not have an impact on the condensed consolidated financial statements. ​ In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-09, “Codification Improvements” to remove disclosures that no longer are considered cost-beneficial, clarify the specific requirements of disclosures, and add disclosure requirements identified as relevant. The scope of the guidance is broad and includes reporting comprehensive income, debt modifications and extinguishments and other sub topics. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2020 and it did not have an impact on the condensed consolidated financial statements. ​ ​ Accounting standards to be implemented ​ In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-14, “Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Defined Benefit Plans (Subtopic 715-20)”, to improve the effectiveness of benefit plan disclosures in the notes to financial statements by facilitating clear communication of the information required by GAAP that is most important to users of each entity’s financial statements. The amendments in this ASU modify the disclosure requirements for employers that sponsor defined benefit pension or other postretirement plans. Additionally, the amendments in this ASU remove disclosures that no longer are considered cost beneficial, clarify the specific requirements of disclosures, and add disclosure requirements identified as relevant. The amendments in this ASU are effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2020, for public business entities and early adoption is permitted for all entities. We are currently evaluating the impact that adoption will have on our disclosures. ​ In December 2019, the FASB issued amendments to the guidance for income taxes through ASU 2019-12, “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes.” The amendments in this update simplify the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions such as: 1) the incremental approach for intraperiod tax allocation when there is a loss from continuing operations and income or a gain from other items, 2) the requirement to recognize a deferred tax liability for equity method investments when a foreign subsidiary becomes an equity method investment, 3) the ability not to recognize a deferred tax liability for a foreign subsidiary when a foreign equity method investment becomes a subsidiary, and 4) the general methodology for calculating income taxes in an interim period when a year-to-date loss exceeds the anticipated loss for the year. For public entities, the amendments are effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted. We are in the process of evaluating the potential impact of the new guidance on our consolidated financial statements. ​ In March 2020, the FASB issued amendments to the guidance for reference rate reform through ASU 2020-04, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Facilitation of the effects of reference rate reform on financial reporting.” The amendments in this update provide optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by reference rate reform if certain criteria are met. The amendments apply only to contracts and hedging relationships that reference LIBOR or another reference rate expected to be discontinued due to reference rate reform. The expedients and exceptions provided by the amendments do not apply to contract modifications made and hedging relationships entered into or evaluated after December 31, 2022. The amendments are elective and are effective upon issuance for all entities. We are in the process of evaluating the potential impact of the new guidance on our consolidated financial statements. ​

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