Statkraft's Q1 profit quadrupled on high power prices, offshore wind exit

Elmera ASA

26/04/2018 08:27

OSLO, April 26 (Reuters) - Norwegian state-owned utility
Statkraft  STATKF.UL  said on Thursday its first quarter net
profit quadrupled year on year, mostly driven by higher Nordic
power prices, divestment of offshore wind assets and the listing
of a retail unit.
    Statkraft, which sold its stake in Britain's Dudgeon wind
farm and listed electricity company Fjordkraft  FKRAFT.OL ,
reported a net profit of 10.3 billion Norwegian crowns ($1.29
billion), up from 2.7 billion last year.
    The gain from the Dudgeon wind farm sale was 5.1 billion
crowns, while listing Fjordkraft earned Statkraft a further 1.7
billion crowns.
    "Statkraft delivered a strong operating profit driven by
higher Nordic power prices and successful energy management,"
its chief executive Christian Rynning-Toennesen said, adding
that the divestments made further contribution.
    The average Nordic system price for power in the quarter was
38.6 euros per megawatthour, an increase of 24 per cent compared
with the price level experienced in the same quarter in 2017,
the company said.
    Benefiting from the higher power price, Statkraft increased
its total electricity generation for the quarter by 23 percent,
reaching 21 terawatthours.

($1 = 7.9702 Norwegian crowns)

 (Reporting by Lefteris Karagiannopoulos, editing by Terje
Solsvik)
 ((lefteris.karagiannopoulos@thomsonreuters.com; +47 23316519;
Reuters Messaging:
lefteris.karagiannopoulos.thomsonreuters@reuters.net))