EnBW hit by low winds in first half of 2021

German developer’s operating profit impacted by low winds, onshore and offshore, but it expects results to even out in H2

by Craig Richard 29 July 2021

EnBW reported poor winds in the first half of 2021 – both in comparison to 2020 levels and the long-term average

Poor wind conditions squeezed German utility-developer EnBW’s operating profit in the first half of the year.

The company increased its investment in growth areas such as renewables and electromobility by 30% from last year, with an auction win in the UK accounting for much of this rise.

EnBW stated that its adjusted Ebitda was still slightly below last year’s total, but is expected to even out over the second half of the year.

Meanwhile, its chief financial officer Thomas Kusterer noted that the company was closing the gap between adjusted Ebitda for 2020 and 2021 between the first and second quarters.

The coronavirus pandemic did not have any significant effects on EnBW’s business operations in the first six months of 2021, according to the company.

EnBW recorded sales of €12.6 billion in the first half of 2021, up 29% from the previous year.

It also recorded adjusted Ebitda of €1.48 billion, down 6.8% from the first half of 2021. However, this shortfall was narrowed from the first quarter of 2021, when earnings were 13.8% below Q1 2020 levels.

First-half adjusted Ebitda was down year on year due to temporary valuation effects, EnBW stated, as well as poorer wind conditions, both onshore and offshore, and both compared to the previous year and long-term averages.

Adjusted Ebitda in EnBW’s sustainable generation infrastructure segment fell 11.3% year on year to €661.5 million. This total included a 10.3% fall in adjusted Ebitda from renewable energies to €382.1 million.

EnBW invested €1.078 billion in the first half of 2021, a 34% increase from the same period last year.

This increase was mainly due to successful auctioning of land rights for offshore wind farms off the UK, the developer explained. It teamed up with BP to secure sites in the Irish Sea that could support up to 3GW of offshore wind capacity in a leasing round in February

EnBW added that growth segments such as renewable energies and charging infrastructure for electric vehicles accounted for the majority (72.9%) of this total investment.

The company maintained its full-year guidance, expecting adjusted Ebitda of €2.825-2.975 billion, up 2-7% from 2020.