Xcel Energy 2000 Annual Report Download - page 2

REPORT OF MANAGEMENT
Management is responsible for the preparation and integrity of Xcel Energy’s financial statements. The financial statements have been prepared in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles and necessarily include some amounts that are based on management’s estimates and judgment.
To fulfill its responsibility, management maintains a strong internal control structure, supported by formal policies and procedures that are communicated
throughout Xcel Energy. Management also maintains a staff of internal auditors who evaluate the adequacy of and investigate the adherence to these
controls, policies and procedures.
Our independent public accountants have audited the financial statements and have rendered an opinion as to the statements’ fairness of presentation,
in all material respects, in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. During the audit, they obtained an understanding
of Xcel Energy’s internal control structure, and performed tests and other procedures to the extent required by generally accepted auditing standards in
the United States.
The board of directors pursues its oversight role with respect to Xcel Energy’s financial statements through the Audit Committee, which is comprised solely
of nonmanagement directors. The committee meets periodically with the independent public accountants, internal auditors and management to ensure that
all are properly discharging their responsibilities. The committee approves the scope of the annual audit and reviews the recommendations the independent
public accountants have for improving the internal control structure. The board of directors, on the recommendation of the Audit Committee, engages the
independent public accountants.
Both the independent public accountants and the internal auditors have unrestricted access to the Audit Committee.
Wayne H. Brunetti Edward J. McIntyre Xcel Energy Inc.
President and Chief Executive Officer Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Minneapolis, Minnesota
March 2, 2001
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
To Xcel Energy Inc.:
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and statements of capitalization of Xcel Energy Inc. (a Minnesota corporation) and subsidiaries
as of Dec. 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year
period ended Dec. 31, 2000. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on
these financial statements based on our audits. We did not audit the consolidated financial statements of NRG Energy, Inc. for the year ended Dec. 31, 2000,
included in the consolidated financial statements of Xcel Energy Inc., which statements reflect total assets and revenues of 28 percent and 17 percent,
respectively, of the related consolidated totals. We also did not audit the consolidated financial statements of Northern States Power Co., for the years
ended Dec. 31, 1999 or 1998, included in the consolidated financial statements of Xcel Energy Inc., which statements reflect total assets of 54 percent in
1999 and total revenues of 44 percent and 46 percent in 1999 and 1998, respectively, of the related consolidated totals. Those statements were audited by
other auditors whose reports have been furnished to us, and our opinion, insofar as it relates to the amounts included for NRG Energy, Inc. and Northern
States Power Co. for the periods described above, is based solely on the reports of the other auditors.
We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States. Those standards require that we plan and perform
the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test
basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and
significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audits and the reports
of other auditors provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, based on our audits and the reports of other auditors, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the
financial position of Xcel Energy Inc. and its subsidiaries as of Dec. 31, 2000 and 1999, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of
the years in the three-year period ended Dec. 31, 2000, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.
Arthur Andersen LLP
Minneapolis, Minnesota
March 2, 2001
XCEL ENERGY INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
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REPORTS OF MANAGEMENT AND INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS