The energy company attributes Spain’s 19% drop in profits to regulatory and fiscal measures and high energy costs “that have not been passed on to customers”
Iberdrola ended 2022 with a global net profit of 4,339 million euros, which is 12% more than last year. However, the company points out that the result in Spain fell by 19%. The group blames regulatory and fiscal measures, such as the new extraordinary tax on energy companies and banks, as well as high energy costs “that have not been passed on to customers,” the company says.
Over the past year, the government has taken several measures to reduce the profits of the energy sector when it sells electricity above €67/MWh, as well as the impact of the extension of the electricity social premium and other schemes that have limited benefits. In addition, 80% of the electricity marketed by Iberdrola is contracted on a long-term basis, regardless of the behavior of the electricity market, with costs skyrocketing to more than €500/MWh at certain times of the year.
President of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, stated that “in a year marked by the energy crisis and problems in global supply chains, we increased investments by 13% to almost €11,000 million to continue solid growth, generate more activity and employment and dependence on fossil fuels”.
For this year, Iberdrola forecasts net profit growth of between 8% and 10%, although it admits that if the extraordinary tax on sales remains in place, that profit increase will be practically half, in a 5% environment. The new taxes to tax the extraordinary profits of banks and energy companies have already raised €1,454 million and the Executive expects them to exceed the forecast of €3,000 million for the full year.
The group has made historic investments of EUR 10,730 million, which is 13% more than in the same period last year, despite inflationary pressures and supply chain challenges. 90% of the investment is allocated to renewables and smart grids to accelerate electrification and promote energy autonomy.
38% of the investment is allocated to the European Union -almost 3,000 million in Spain, the country that received the most investments, and 1,200 million in other countries such as Germany, France or Portugal-. 25% of the investment was made in the United States, 20% in Latin America and 13% in the United Kingdom. The remaining 4% went to other countries, such as Australia.
As a result of the investments already made, the group has closed 2022 with a renewable installed capacity of approximately 40,000 MW worldwide and consolidates its installed capacity as one of the cleanest in the world, as 80% is emission-free. The company also has 7,675 MW under construction that will be operational over the next four years. Of this, nearly 3,500 MW corresponds to offshore wind projects in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and France.
For its part, the network asset base increased by 19% compared to the same period last year, to EUR 39.2 billion. Said asset base is evenly distributed across the US, with 31% of the total; United Kingdom and Spain, each with 24%; and Brazil, with 21%.
During the year, the group continued to reduce its emissions to just 59 grams of CO2/kWh in Europe, four times less than the industry average, and has improved its decarbonisation targets, aiming to have net zero emissions in its production facilities. and self-consumption as early as 2030 and in all its activities before 2040.
In view of these results, the Board of Directors will propose to the General Meeting of Shareholders an additional remuneration of EUR 0.31 gross per share, to which must be added the interim dividend of EUR 0.18 gross per share paid in January, which will be comes to hundreds of thousands of savers who invest in Iberdrola.
Despite the difficult macroeconomic context, Iberdrola continued to strengthen its balance sheet with more than EUR 12,700 million in new financing in competitive market conditions. Of this amount, 10,700 million meets ESG (environmental, social and governance) criteria, with which the group has reached a total of 48,600 million euros in green and sustainable financing.
The company expects to invest 11,000 million euros in 2023, which will allow it to increase its installed renewable capacity by 3,000 MW and continue to increase its network assets, which already exceed 39,000 million euros.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
