Purchases under the NCIB may be made through the facilities of the TSX, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and other designated exchanges and alternative trading systems, commencing on January 6, 2023 and continuing until January 5, 2024, when the bid expires, or such earlier date on which the Company has either acquired the maximum number of common shares allowable under the NCIB or otherwise decides not to make any further repurchases under the NCIB. The maximum number of common shares that Enbridge may repurchase for cancellation represents approximately 1.38% of the 2,024,890,423 common shares issued and outstanding as at December 23, 2022.
The renewal of the Company’s NCIB is intended to provide an additional capital allocation tool to supplement its dividend program as a means of returning capital to shareholders. Repurchases of common shares pursuant to the NCIB are expected to be opportunistic and will be predicated upon maintaining a strong balance sheet, performance of the business, and the availability and attractiveness of alternative capital investment opportunities. The price that Enbridge will pay for common shares in open market transactions will be the market price at the time of purchase and common shares purchased under the NCIB will be cancelled. The actual number of common shares purchased under the NCIB, the timing of purchases, and the price at which the common shares are acquired will depend upon future market conditions.
The NCIB will be effected in accordance with the TSX’s NCIB rules and Rule 10b-18 under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which contain restrictions on the number of common shares that may be purchased on a single day, subject to certain exceptions for block purchases, based on the average daily trading volumes of Enbridge’s common shares on the applicable exchange. Subject to exceptions for block purchases, Enbridge will limit daily purchases of common shares on the TSX in connection with the NCIB to no more than 25 percent (2,135,208 common shares) of the average daily trading volume of the common shares on the TSX from July 1, 2022 to and including December 31, 2022 (8,540,830 common shares) during any trading day.
Pursuant to its existing NCIB, under which the Company has approval from the TSX to purchase up to 31,062,331 of its outstanding common shares during the period from January 5, 2022 to January 4, 2023, Enbridge has purchased 2,737,965 common shares on the TSX, NYSE and alternative trading systems at a weighted average purchase price of CAD$54.90 per common share.