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Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel's $23.7M payout makes him Alberta's highest-paid executive in 2024
Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel's $23.7M payout makes him Alberta's highest-paid executive in 2024

Calgary Herald

time22-07-2025

  • Business
  • Calgary Herald

Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel's $23.7M payout makes him Alberta's highest-paid executive in 2024

Article content Enbridge president and CEO Greg Ebel, whose compensation included almost $13 million in share-based awards, climbed to No. 1 on the list of Alberta's highest-earning executives in 2024. Article content At $23.78 million, Ebel was closely trailed by Canadian Pacific Kansas City president and CEO Keith Creel, a perennial top earner who received $23.57 million in total pay last year. Article content Article content In 2023, Ebel ranked third among all top executives in Alberta, earning $18.7 million, while Creel was second behind Suncor's Rich Kruger at just over $20 million. Article content Ebel, who was named president and CEO of the Calgary-based pipeline giant in January 2023, had a base salary of about $2 million last year. He received $12.74 million in share-based awards — often meant to incentivize executives to align their interests with shareholders — and almost $8 million more in stock options and other bonuses. Article content As CEO, Ebel is paid 'for the results he delivers for the company and shareholders,' said Enbridge in an emailed statement. Article content 'Our compensation philosophy is rooted in pay-for-performance. As such, 89 per cent of our (CEO's) pay is 'at-risk.' That is, payouts are not guaranteed, and the value of at-risk components depends on how well the company performs.' Article content Article content Supporting Ebel's compensation package for 2024 was the delivery of record financial results, achievement of distributable cash flow within the company's financial guidance range and the garnering of over 37 per cent total shareholder return, according to Enbridge. Article content Total shareholder return is a way of measuring financial performance, an indicator of the total amount shareholders reap from an investment. Article content Enbridge added that its executive compensation is benchmarked against industry peers across North America, such as Chevron, Suncor and others. Article content 'Several of our senior executives, including our CEO, are compensated near the 50th percentile in this industry peer group,' its statement read.

‘Put a ‘W' next to Dino's name.' NL wins All-Star Game swing-off, with help from Dino Ebel
‘Put a ‘W' next to Dino's name.' NL wins All-Star Game swing-off, with help from Dino Ebel

Los Angeles Times

time16-07-2025

  • Sport
  • Los Angeles Times

‘Put a ‘W' next to Dino's name.' NL wins All-Star Game swing-off, with help from Dino Ebel

Technically, there was no winning pitcher in Major League Baseball's 95th All-Star Game. The man who gave up the night's biggest swings, however, was probably as deserving as any. As the American League stormed back from a 6-0 deficit in Tuesday's Midsummer Classic, a rarely contemplated reality started to dawn in both dugouts. Three years ago, MLB changed its rules for how to break ties in its annual marquee event, instituting a home run 'swing-off' to be conducted at the conclusion of the ninth inning. Each team selected three players, who each got three swings. Whichever team hit the most home runs in those nine swings wins the game. It was penalty kicks for baseball. A hockey shootout on the diamond. The only difference, though, was that this sport's version required a coach to take part in the action. Enter Dino Ebel — veteran Dodgers' third base coach — and, now, victorious pitcher in the inaugural All-Star Game swing-off. 'What an exciting moment, I think, for baseball, for all the people that stayed, who watched on television, everything,' Ebel said, after teeing up the NL hitters for a 4-3 win in the home run swing-off, and a 7-6 win overall in the All-Star Game. 'That was pretty awesome to be a part of … I had like 10 throws just to get loose. And then it's like, 'Let's bring it on.' ' Indeed, in an event that can often go stale once starters get removed in the early innings, the finish to Tuesday's game energized both the stands and the dugouts, with players from both teams emptying onto the field and wildly cheering each swing. 'That was like the baseball version of a shootout or extra time,' said Philadelphia Phillies star Kyle Schwarber, who went 3-for-3 in his turn at the plate to ultimately lift the NL to the win, and earn All-Star Game MVP honors for himself. 'It was really fun. I credit the guys on our side, who were really into it.' 'First time in history we got to do this,' added Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts, who was previously 0-3 as an All-Star Game manager before Tuesday's dramatic conclusion. 'I think it played pretty well tonight.' Perhaps the greatest twist: In the middle of it all was Ebel, a 59-year-old base coach who, as a utility infielder from 1988 to 1994 in the Dodgers' minor-league system, never advanced past triple-A. In addition to his duties as third base coach and outfield instructor for the Dodgers, Ebel is something of a batting practice specialist these days. He's thrown it on a daily basis to Dodgers hitters ever since the team hired him in 2019, and as a staff member with the Angels for years before that. He has pitched for four different players in the Home Run Derby, including Albert Pujols, Vladimir Guerrero and Teoscar Hernández's win in Texas last year. Ebel and Schwarber even had previous history of doing batting practice together, back when Ebel was a coach on Team USA's 2023 World Baseball Classic squad two years prior. 'He's got great BP,' Schwarber said. 'A lot of credit goes to him, just kind of getting thrown into the firestorm there and not being rattled by it, being able to keep pumping really good strikes to us.' By the time Schwarber came up in the second round of the swing-off, the NL was in somewhat dicey position. Brent Rooker of the A's started the event off with two home runs for the AL. Kyle Stowers of the Miami Marlins and Randy Arozarena of the Seattle Mariners each traded one, leaving the AL ahead 3-1. And while Schwarber is one of the league's most feared sluggers, with 30 long balls this year and 314 in his career, he said he rarely takes actual batting practice on the field, leaving him admittedly 'a little nervous' as strolled to the dish. 'I think the first swing was kind of the big one,' Schwarber said. 'I was just really trying to hit a line drive, versus trying to hit the home run. Usually, that tends to work out — especially in games.' As Schwarber was preparing for his round, he and Ebel discussed where exactly he wanted the ball thrown. 'I'm gonna go left-center to center field,' Schwarber told Ebel. 'So just throw it down the middle.' Three thunderous swings later, Schwarber had put the NL in front with three towering blasts. 'This was putting it more on the line,' Ebel said of Tuesday's format, which unlike the Home Run Derby or daily BP, required more patience and precision with each player permitted only three swings. 'Like right now, you're gonna win it or you're gonna lose it. And we won it.' Indeed, when the Tampa Bay Rays' Jonathan Aranda suffered an 0-fer that culminated in a pop-up, the NL team swarmed Schwarber, who then sought out Ebel and embraced him with a hug. 'A lot of credit goes to him for the National League bringing it home,' Schwarber reiterated. 'Put a 'W' next to Dino's name in the paper,' Roberts echoed. 'Dino should get the win, absolutely.' This week was memorable for Ebel even before Tuesday's swing-off. On Sunday morning, he flew home early from the Dodgers' road series in San Francisco to be with his son, Brady, for the MLB Draft. From their living room, the Ebel family celebrated after Brady was selected 32nd overall by the Milwaukee Brewers, then packed up and headed for Ontario International Airport to catch a red-eye flight Sunday for Atlanta. And after getting in early on Monday morning, Ebel had been going non-stop around All-Star festivities, joining his fellow Dodgers coaches (who made up the honorary NL staff after winning the pennant last year) for media appearances, throwing batting practice in a pre-Home Run Derby workout on Monday and, as it turned out, doing it again with Tuesday's game in the balance. 'It's pretty high adrenaline going for me right now,' Ebel said from the NL clubhouse postgame. 'I haven't gotten too much sleep. But right now, I feel like I've slept for days. Because I'm wired up.'

A special tour in Germany lets pedestrians experience life in a wheelchair
A special tour in Germany lets pedestrians experience life in a wheelchair

The Star

time22-05-2025

  • General
  • The Star

A special tour in Germany lets pedestrians experience life in a wheelchair

'Lean your upper body forward!' shouts Rita Ebel, sharing practical advice for tackling access ramps – wisdom she has gained from years of experience navigating life in a wheelchair. Ebel, who is also affectionately known as Lego Grandma, was paralysed after a car accident about 30 years ago. She and her team invite participants on an eye-opening tour of Hanau's city centre, near Frankfurt, Germany. The man she calls out to is a 'pedestrian,' as Ebel likes to call non-wheelchair users. As part of Ebel's 'Change of Perspective' project, pedestrians get a first-hand experience of moving around in a wheelchair. Volunteers provide the wheelchairs and guide participants as they face challenges like steep ramps and high shop counters, revealing obstacles that are often invisible to non-disabled individuals. Firm hands prevent a fall Despite following Ebel's advice to lean forward and turn the wheels vigorously, a man attempting to navigate the ramp made of Lego bricks nearly tips over backward. Quick reflexes from Gabriele Schaar-von Romer, a volunteer with Lego Grandma's team, and other participants save him from falling. The experience leaves the novice wheelchair user breathless and with a newfound respect for the challenges of wheelchair users. Traxel (centre) and her young daughter try navigating a wheelchair ramp to enter a shop. Jessica Traxel faces similar difficulties on the same ramp. 'I didn't think it was bad,' she says afterwards '... but if no one had been behind me, I would have been scared'. The project aims to highlighting the obstacles and limited access many people with limited mobility face daily. A game changer Thomas Klingenstein, a 50-year-old participant, confidently takes on the ramp in a wheelchair. 'Everything's fine,' he says after completing the climb. 'You have to accelerate to get up, but it works.' The ramp, crafted from Lego bricks by Ebel and her team, has a notably steep incline. 'It's steep, but it's better than nothing,' remarks Bärbel Neuwirth, a wheelchair user also participating in the tour. The challenge lies in regulations: commercial ramps are limited to a maximum incline of 6%, requiring significant length to reach even modest heights – often impractical in front of shops or houses. Ebel's custom Lego ramps offer a practical alternative, as they can be built steeper to fit limited spaces. Although no official standards exist for these Lego structures, Ebel and her team include a legal declaration of use with each ramp they deliver, ensuring transparency and safeguarding against liability. Across Germany and in countries like France, Italy, Austria and Spain, Ebel's colourful Lego ramps have become a game-changer. They have helped transform daunting high steps in front of shops, public buildings and homes into accessible pathways – not just for wheelchair users but also for those with rollators and pushchairs. 'Even if our ramps don't meet the strict legal requirements, I'd much rather be pushed up or down a steep ramp than have someone tip me backward to manage a high step,' says the 67-year-old Ebel. While strangers often offer to assist wheelchair users with navigating steps, Ebel points out that few wheelchair users feel comfortable entrusting themselves to someone else's hands. 'It's rare to find someone willing to be tipped backward by a stranger,' she emphasises, highlighting the importance of solutions that empower independence. Some challenges The difficulties of navigating a wheelchair don't end once you've entered a shop or café. High counters, for example, can be an obstacle and a deterrent for wheelchair users, as participants in the wheelchair tour discovered during a stop at a local shop. This issue extends beyond retail spaces and into places like doctors' offices, Ebel notes. 'We want the businesses involved in our project to start asking people with disabilities: 'What can we do to make you feel more comfortable here?',' Schaar-von Romer says. She adds that many shop owners are open to making necessary changes when approached about accessibility concerns. The volunteer believes that addressing these issues benefits not only those with disabilities but also the broader community: 'How can you revitalise the city centre if you're excluding some people?' – dpa

1 High-Yield Dividend Stock You Can Buy and Hold for a Lifetime of Passive Income
1 High-Yield Dividend Stock You Can Buy and Hold for a Lifetime of Passive Income

Yahoo

time16-05-2025

  • Business
  • Yahoo

1 High-Yield Dividend Stock You Can Buy and Hold for a Lifetime of Passive Income

Enbridge has a low-risk, utility-like business model. That company has delivered very reliable results over the decades. It has lots of visible growth ahead. 10 stocks we like better than Enbridge › Enbridge (NYSE: ENB) has built one of the most durable businesses in the energy sector, which has enabled the Canadian pipeline and utility company to deliver reliable results over the decades. It has paid dividends for over 70 years, increasing its payment for the past 30 in a row. Meanwhile, it's on track to achieve its annual financial guidance for the 20th straight year. That dependability should continue in the decades ahead. With its dividend yielding more than 6% these days, Enbridge is an ideal stock to buy and hold for a lifelong stream of dividend income. Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel highlighted the company's investment proposition on its recent first-quarter conference call. He stated: The consistency and resiliency of our business really came through this quarter with record financial results and execution on our disciplined growth strategy. Our industry-leading low-risk business model delivers in all economic and commodity cycles, and you saw that happen once again in the first quarter. The company delivered record earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA), distributable cash flow per share, and earnings per share (EPS) during that period, which was impressive considering the volatility in the energy markets since the year began. The company benefited from last year's acquisition of three stable U.S. gas utilities and strong volume across its overall business. Enbridge's diversified, low-risk, utility-like business model generates predictable results. About 98% of the company's cash flow comes from stable cost-of-service frameworks or long-term, fixed-rate contracts with financially strong customers (over 95% have investment-grade credit ratings). Meanwhile, those financial structures have features that protect about 80% of its EBITDA from inflation. The company's low-risk business profile provides a strong foundation for growing shareholder value. Ebel highlighted the company's "first choice value proposition" on the call, which he noted "has delivered strong double-digit shareholder returns over the past 20 years through thick and thin, up cycles and down cycles." He stated that the company's "financial flexibility allows us to grow our business and sustainably return capital to shareholders," which it has done by increasing its dividend for 30 straight years. Enbridge's base business will continue generating significant free cash flow. The company aims to pay out 60% to 70% of its stable and predictable cash flow to investors in dividends. That enables it to retain billions of dollars in excess free cash flow each year to fund its continued expansion. Add in the capacity on its strong investment-grade balance sheet, and the company "can now self-equity fund $9 billion-$10 billion Canadian dollars ($6.4 billion-$7.2 billion) of organic growth projects annually," commented CFO Pat Murray on the first-quarter call. Enbridge ended the first quarter with a secured growth backlog of CA$28 billion ($20 billion) of projects it expects to complete by the end of 2029. Those projects span its four core franchises (liquids pipelines, gas transmission, gas distribution, and renewable power). Murray noted that at its current run-rate, "[W]e expect to deploy $8 billion-$9 billion ($5.7 billion-$6.4 billion) per year toward that secured growth projects." Murray remarked, "That leaves us with an additional $1 billion to $2 billion ($700 million-$1.4 billion) that can be opportunistically allocated, whether that be sanctioning new strategic projects, accretive tuck-in M&A [mergers and acquisitions] such as the 10% acquisition of Matterhorn, or reducing debt." It spent about $300 million to buy that stake in the Matterhorn Express Pipeline, which transports gas out of the Permian Basin to the Gulf Coast region. Meanwhile, Enbridge has another CA$50 billion ($35.7 billion) in additional expansion opportunities under development across its four franchises. The company plans to be selective, "prioritizing the highest returning and most strategic projects," stated Murray. The company's combination of stable earnings from its base business, visible earnings growth from its secured backlog, and additional investment capacity supports its long-term growth outlook. Ebel stated on the call, "We expect to support continued dividend growth by growing our business by 5% per year through the end of the decade." Meanwhile, given its massive opportunity set and the long-term demand growth for energy, especially for lower-carbon energy like natural gas and renewables, Enbridge should have no trouble finding opportunities to continue expanding its operations in the future. Enbridge has one of the lowest-risk business models around. The company generates utility-like cash flow from a diversified portfolio of energy infrastructure assets, which supports the company's high-yielding dividend. It also has ample financial flexibility to invest in expanding its operations, which has given it the fuel to steadily grow its dividend. The company already has ample growth lined up through the end of the decade, and more projects are coming down the pipeline. These features make Enbridge an ideal dividend stock to buy and hold for a lifetime of passive income. Before you buy stock in Enbridge, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Enbridge wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $620,719!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $829,511!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 959% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 170% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025 Matt DiLallo has positions in Enbridge. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Enbridge. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 1 High-Yield Dividend Stock You Can Buy and Hold for a Lifetime of Passive Income was originally published by The Motley Fool

TUI posts slowdown in its summer bookings
TUI posts slowdown in its summer bookings

RTÉ News​

time14-05-2025

  • Business
  • RTÉ News​

TUI posts slowdown in its summer bookings

Europe's largest travel operator TUI has today flagged a 1% drop in summer bookings, which knocked its shares down nearly 7% in early trading. TUI, which maintained its 2025 outlook, blamed the shift in summer bookings on a later Easter, which impacted most airlines' January to March reporting, But European carriers Air France-KLM and British Airways-owner IAG so far have reported a stronger January to March. In a statement, CEO Sebastian Ebel said that given economic conditions, 2025 will be "challenging". "Europe needs new momentum. We must return to an overall economy that is growing," he said. Aanalysts and investors pointed particularly to the German market as a weak link. "The weakness in Germany could suggest we move away from the top end of guidance (if trends continue)," analyst Ed Vyvyan at Redburn Atlantic said. A slowdown in bookings growth also hit TUI shares at the time of the group's last earnings report in February. "We are clearly facing a slowdown in the level of demand (at TUI), notably in Germany," Fehmi Ben Naamane, an analyst at ODDO BHF, told Reuters. TUI also today reported an underlying loss before interest and taxes of €206.8m in the January-to-March quarter, wider than the €188.7m loss it reported a year ago but narrower than the €224m expected by analysts polled by LSEG. Ebel said on a media call that booking momentum had picked up since May 1 and summer bookings would likely be on par with last year. "You can lose in winter and win in summer," Ebel told reporters, adding that the second quarter was the least important quarter of the year. TUI has sought to diversify its income, expanding in Asia and central Europe, in an effort to bring in new streams of revenue as fears grow over European demand. Ebel said it will likely take three years for the benefits of that strategy to show up in the TUI balance sheet, but that the company had managed to avoid losses tied to the new projects. The group said its quarterly revenues slightly improved year-on-year to €3.71 billion from €3.65 billion in the same quarter last year.

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