Italian energy giant Enel saw its net profit fall by 29.8% to 1.76 billion euros in the first nine months of the year, despite a jump in revenue, boosted by higher prices and production.
Excluding exceptional items, net profit came to 2.98 billion euros, down 9.5%, the group said in a statement on Thursday.
Due to a “lower contribution from activities in Italy”, Enel has revised downwards its net profit forecast excluding exceptional items for 2022, which should now reach between 5 and 5.3 billion euros, compared to 5.6 to 5.8 billion previously.
Revenues jumped 84% to 108.2 billion euros, driven by increased electricity and gas sales and soaring energy prices.
These results “demonstrate the resilience of the group” despite “an unfavorable geopolitical, energy and economic environment”, commented Enel CEO Francesco Starace.
For the full year, the group confirmed that it expects operating profit (Ebitda) excluding exceptional items to be between 19 and 19.6 billion euros.
For its part, Ebit fell by 13.6% to 5.52 billion euros over nine months, due to depreciation and value adjustments on assets of companies “available for sale” in Brazil and Russia, explains the group.
Enel had announced in mid-June the sale of its 56.43% stake in its Russian subsidiary to the oil giant Lukoil and the Gazprombank-Frezia fund for 137 million euros.
This transaction should reduce its debt by about 550 million euros, but will have a negative impact on net income of about 1.3 billion euros, the group warned at the time.
Investments climbed 17.8% to 9.3 billion euros over nine months, in order to accelerate the energy transition.
The production of renewable energy now represents 48% of the total, against 40% of thermal origin and 12% of nuclear origin.
At the end of October, Enel signed an agreement with the American investment fund CVC on the sale of 50% of its subsidiary Gridspertise, a company dedicated to the digital transformation of electricity networks.
Under the agreement, CVC will pay a consideration of approximately 300 million euros, equivalent to an enterprise value of 625 million euros.
The transaction is expected to have a positive impact on Enel’s Ebitda of around €500 million and reduce its net debt by some €300 million, according to the group.
