Portuguese power utility EDP’s profit halves on tax, regulations
LISBON: Power utility EDP-Energias de Portugal posted on Monday a 53 percent drop in its net 2018 profit citing regulatory and tax impacts at home, while its international renewable power unit EDPR and the Brazilian subsidiary had record incomes.
Net profit at Portugal’s largest company by assets, which is the target of a takeover bid by China Three Gorges, fell to 519 million euros ($584 million), with the domestic operations bringing it the first loss since 1997, of 18 million euros.
EDP Brazil net more than doubled in local currency terms, while EDP Renewables netted 14 percent more than a year earlier.
Excluding one-offs, such as government-ordered compensation payments and year-ago gains from asset sales, net profit rose 3 percent at 797 million euros, EDP said. Core earnings (EBITDA) fell 17 percent to around 3.32 billion euros.
The net profit came at the lower end of the company’s latest forecast range of between 500 million and 600 million euros.
EDP incurred losses from a government-imposed reduction in the final compensation paid to the former monopoly for giving up some long-term power-purchase deals, and higher costs related to the so-called social tariff for low-income households.
EDP also reduced its net debt by 400 million euros last year to 13.5 billion.
Source: in.reuters
