Norwegian state-owned utility Statkraft AS on Tuesday posted a 2.7% year-on-year rise in underlying operating profit (EBIT) for the period January-March 2023.
Statkraft closed the first quarter with an underlying EBIT of NOK 18.54 billion (USD 1.69bn/EUR 1.57bn), its second-strongest quarterly result so far.
During the reporting period, power prices were generally lower but an uptake was witnessed in the Nordic countries, and Norway in particular. Overall, the improved performance of the segments Nordics, Europe and Markets was a major driver for the group’s increased earnings, coupled with the growth in trading and origination activities, which brought in NOK 3.6 billion in earnings. Meanwhile, operating expenses rose due to the high-price contribution in Norway, labour costs, growth activities and a weakening of the Norwegian krone.
At NOK 24.47 billion, net operating revenues and other underlying income climbed by 10.8% in annual terms thanks to positive contributions from hedging and currency effects. More details about Statkraft’s financial results are available in the table.
| Amounts in NOK |
Q1 2023 |
Q1 2022 |
| Net operating revenues and other income underlying |
24.47bn |
22.09bn |
| Operating profit / EBIT (loss) underlying |
18.54bn |
17.95bn |
| -- from Nordics |
12.54bn |
12.48bn |
| -- from Europe |
2.51bn |
949m |
| -- from International |
139m |
144m |
| -- from Markets |
3.63bn |
4.66bn |
| -- from District heating |
127m |
105m |
| -- from New technologies |
(247m) |
(147m) |
| Operating profit / EBIT (loss) IFRS |
22.46bn |
16.96bn |
| Net profit (loss) |
10.87bn |
11.44bn |
"Statkraft is reporting very strong results in the first quarter of 2023,” said CEO Christian Rynning-Tonnesen.
The group’s total power generation was 17.5 TWh, lower than in the year-ago period due to the decreased Norwegian hydropower generation. Wind, biomass and solar generation remained unchanged, while hydropower output fell to 15.6 TWh from 16.5 TWh.
Statkraft is working to enhance its renewables operations by installing some 2.5 GW-3 GW of capacity annually, with the goal aimed to reach 4 GW by 2030. At the end of the quarter, the development rate was 1 GW. Most of the company’s new investments are in onshore wind, solar and hydropower.
(NOK 10 = USD 0.912/EUR 0.846)
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Image by Statkraft AS.
