Genesis underlying profit up 16% on improved retail earnings

Genesis underlying profit up 16% on improved retail earnings

By Gavin Evans

Aug. 28 (BusinessDesk) - Genesis Energy reported a 16 percent increase in underlying full-year profit, with improved retail earnings offsetting a flat performance from its generation arm and weaker oil production from its Kupe interests.

The country’s biggest electricity and gas retailer said net profit more than doubled to $59 million for the year ended June 30, buoyed by $35 million of fair value gains. Excluding those gains and other one-time items, underlying profit rose to $67 million from $57 million a year earlier.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and financial instruments rose almost 1 percent to $363 million.

In April, the firm warned that reduced gas supplies from the Pohokura field, lower water in its own hydro catchments and increased coal imports would mean its full-year ebitdaf would fall in the lower end of the $360-375 million range it had signalled.

Retail ebitdaf was $13 million higher at $123 million, wholesale ebitdaf was unchanged at $178 million and earnings at Kupe fell to $109 million from $115 million.

Chief executive Marc England said the firm’s retail arm built momentum during the past year, while the wholesale business demonstrated its resilience.

Retail electricity volumes rose 1.5 percent, driven by increased sales to firms and industry, while a decline in mass-market power accounts was offset by increasing gas and LPG connections.

Coal-fired production at the firm’s dual-fuel Rankine units at Huntly doubled to 1,404 GWh in the period in order to offset a 24 percent fall in the firm’s gas-fired generation and a 7 percent decline in the firm’s hydro production.

The company will pay an 8.6 cent final dividend on Oct. 31 to shareholders registered at Oct. 17. That is unchanged from a year earlier and takes the full-year payout to 17.05 cents from 16.9 cents last year.

The firm’s shares last traded at $3.365 and have gained about 30 percent this year.

(BusinessDesk)

ends

© Scoop Media