Japan's Kansai Elec ups FY profit forecast on nuclear power, demand

Kansai Electric Power Co

31/01/2025 09:36

TOKYO, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Kansai Electric Power Co
 9503.T , Japan's top nuclear power operator, raised its profit
forecast for the fiscal year ending in March by 40% to 365
billion yen ($2.4 billion) on higher nuclear power runs and
stronger earnings at its transmission and distribution business.
    Kansai Electric had five nuclear reactors online with a
combined capacity of 4.6 gigawatts as of end-December. On
Friday, the company raised its nuclear capacity factor forecast
- an indicator of its nuclear power load - to 85% from the
previously expected 80%.
    Kansai Electric now expects profit from its transmission and
distribution business to rise by 73 billion yen from the
previous forecast.
    The company is also targeting higher electricity and gas
sales thanks to a higher demand forecast for the Kansai area -
Japan's second busiest region - after the Tokyo Metropolitan
area - which includes the cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe.
    For the nine-month period ended in December, Kansai Electric
posted a 3% year-on-year increase in net profit to 362 billion
yen, also driven by increased nuclear power operations and as it
booked a 63 billion yen gain from the sale of a 28% stake in UK
power distribution company Electricity North West. 
    The results from Kansai Electric, which kept a 12% stake in
Electricity North West after the deal, contrast to those from
major Japanese power sales companies.
    Profits at JERA, the country's biggest utility, halved to
155 billion yen in April-December amid a weaker performance in
overseas power generation, fuel and renewable energy businesses,
including in Taiwan. 
    Tokyo Gas  9531.T , Japan's biggest city gas provider, saw
profit for the period drop 68% to 36.6 billion yen amid rising
raw material costs. It revised guidance for full-year profit to
72 billion yen from earlier expected 81 billion yen. 
    JERA kept its profit forecast for the full fiscal year at
200 billion yen. 
    ($1 = 154.6000 yen)

 (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi and Katya Golubkova. Editing by
Mark Potter)
 ((jekaterina.golubkova@thomsonreuters.com;))