Energy Trade and Supply
The Energy Trade and Supply Segment is responsible for the trading and sale of electricity and natural gas to end customers, primarily in the Austrian home market and in wholesale markets. The segment’s business activities also include the procurement of electricity, natural gas and other primary energy carriers as well as the production and sale of heat.
In connection with the initial application of the new IFRS conconsolidation standards in the third quarter of 2013/14, the accounting method used to include EnergieAllianz Austria GmbH and EVN Energievertrieb GmbH und Co KG was changed from proportionate to equity consolidation. The earnings contributions from these two companies, from EconGas, e&t Energie Handelsgesellschaft mbH, Vienna, and from the district heating plants in St. Pölten and Steyr are now reported separately under the position “the share of results from equity accounted investees with operational nature“ as part of EBIT.
Highlights 2013/14
- Energy sales to end customers - Mild winter 2013/14 led to decline in sales volumes of electricity, natural gas and heat - Decline in household segment partly offset by electricity and heat sales to industrial customers
- Revenue increase, above all through sales of production from the Duisburg-Walsum power plant
| Key indicators – Energy Trade and Supply | 2013/14 | 2012/131) | Change nominal
in %
| ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key energy business indicators | GWh | ||||||||
| Energy sales volumes to end customers | |||||||||
| Electricity | 6,787 | 7,188 | -401 | -5.6 | |||||
| Natural gas | 5,383 | 6,333 | -950 | -15.0 | |||||
| Heat | 1,806 | 1,857 | -51 | -2.8 | |||||
| Key financial indicators | EURm | ||||||||
| External revenue | 431.5 | 387.8 | 43.6 | 11.3 | |||||
| Internal revenue | 17.2 | 17.9 | -0.8 | -4.4 | |||||
| Total revenue | 448.6 | 405.8 | 42.9 | 10.6 | |||||
| Operating expenses | -448.5 | -415.5 | -33.0 | -8.0 | |||||
| Share of results from equity accounted investees with operational nature | 55.2 | 38.3 | 16.9 | 44.2 | |||||
| EBITDA | 55.3 | 28.6 | 26.7 | 93.5 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortisation including effects from impairment tests | -16.1 | -15.8 | -0.3 | -2.1 | |||||
| Results from operating activities (EBIT) | 39.2 | 12.8 | 26.4 | - | |||||
| Financial results | -3.0 | -3.1 | 0.1 | 3.9 | |||||
| Profit before income tax | 36.2 | 9.7 | 26.5 | - | |||||
| Total assets | 509.4 | 420.4 | 89.0 | 21.2 | |||||
| Total liabilities | 409.3 | 332.4 | 76.9 | 23.1 | |||||
| Investments2) | 32.3 | 30.0 | 2.3 | 7.6 | |||||
| 1) The figures for the prior year were adjusted retrospectively according to IAS 8 (see note 2. Reporting according to IFRS). 2) In intangible assets and property, plant and equipment | |||||||||
Development of energy sales to end customers
Electricity, natural gas and heat sales to end customers declined year-on-year, primarily due to the mild winter weather in the supply area during 2013/14. Electricity sales volumes were also reduced by a decline in the volumes sold by EnergieAllianz Austria in Germany and the absence of network loss deliveries to the Network Infrastructure Austria Segment as of 1 January 2014. Higher demand in the industrial customer segment was able to partly offset the temperature- related lower demand for electricity, natural gas and heat in the household customer segment.
Revenue development
Revenue rose by EUR 42.9m, or 10.6%, to EUR 448.6m in 2013/14. This increase resulted primarily from the sale of generation from the Duisburg-Walsum power plant, which was commissioned in December 2013.
Operating expenses
Operating expenses rose by EUR 33.0m, or 8.0%, to EUR 448.5m in 2013/14. The main factors for this development were the first purchases of electricity produced by the Duisburg-Walsum power plant and an increase in the provisions for onerous contracts related to the marketing of EVN’s own electricity production.
Results from equity accounted investees
The share of results from equity accounted investees with operational nature rose by EUR 16.9m, or 44.2%, to EUR 55.2m, chiefly due to the absence of the negative earnings contribution from EconGas in the previous year.
Operating results
EBITDA rose by EUR 26.7m, or 93.5%, to EUR 55.3m. The expansion of the district heating network led to a slight rise in segment depreciation and amortisation to EUR 16.1m. This resulted in an EBIT increase of EUR 26.4m to EUR 39.2m.
Financial results and profit before tax
Financial results were nearly unchanged and amounted to EUR –3.0m for 2013/14, compared with EUR –3.1m in the previous year. Profit before tax in the Energy Trade and Supply Segment improved by EUR 26.5m to EUR 36.2m.
Investments
Investments were slightly higher than the previous year at EUR 32.3m in 2013/14 and focused on the continued expansion of the district heating plants and network as well as the further improvement of network coverage in the heating business. With more than 60 plants, EVN is the largest supplier of natural heat in Austria. The photovoltaic plant in Schönkirchen was also commissioned as a public participation model.
Outlook
The commissioning of the Duisburg-Walsum coal-fired power plant in December 2013 and the resulting full-year effect from EVN’s own production should lead to an increase in sales volumes of electricity, whereby production planning will be based on wholesale market developments. The sales volumes of electricity, natural gas and heat are dependent on the weather conditions in the supply area. The reduction in electricity prices for Lower Austrian household customers as of 1 October 2014 will have an influence on earnings from the electricity end customer business. In total, earnings in the Energy Trade and Supply Segment should reflect the previous year in 2014/15.
