Greencoat Renewables grows revenues by more than half

Company posted profit after tax of €45.3m in first six months of 2023, down from just over €75m

Dublin-listed wind and solar energy group Greencoat Renewables grew revenues by more than half in the first six months of the year, its interim results show.

The group generated revenue of €218.4 million in the six months ended June 30th, 2023, which was up from €143.4 million during the same period last year.

It said the “strong revenue growth” was driven by its expanded portfolio and exposure to higher merchant prices.

However, the company made a profit after tax of €45.3 million, which was down from just over €75 million last year. The group held aggregate debt amounting to €1.1 billion.

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Next cash generation increased by 36 per cent to €125.5 million, up from €92.1 million compared to the same period last year. Greencoat said the increase reflected energy price movement as well as the positive impact of acquisitions and active asset management.

Net asset value per share increased marginally from 112.4 cents per share to 113.2 cents per share. It declared a dividend of 1.605 cents per share for the quarter ended June 30th, payable on September 1st.

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Greencoat Renewables, which floated on the market in 2017, said the performance of the company in the first six months of the year “represents continued progress against our ambition of building a leading European renewable energy infrastructure business”.

“Continued strong cash generation and changeable market conditions has highlighted the benefit of increased scale and portfolio diversification that has underpinned the company’s strategic direction over recent years,” it said.

“Notwithstanding the impact of near-term macro headwinds, the future of renewables remains overwhelmingly positive. The combination of a high-yielding portfolio prudent approach to pricing risk and a strong balance sheet is expected to support further growth and continued delivery of attractive risk-adjusted returns for shareholders.”

The results show the company generated 1,489GW/h of electricity in the period, which was up 1,127GW/h last year. It increased total capacity to 1.32GW, up from 1.03GW.

The group completed three acquisitions totalling €275.5 million over the period, increasing the portfolio to 38 renewable generation and storage assets across six European countries.

‘Acquisitive growth’

Ronan Murphy, non-executive chairman of Greencoat Renewables, said: “I am pleased to confirm another successful period for the company, evidenced by continued strong cash generation, increased dividend cover and acquisitive growth.

“The expansion of the portfolio demonstrates our ability to selectively deploy capital into strategic locations that provide value-accretive opportunities for revenue diversification and long-term growth.

“As Europe continues to pursue greater energy independence with net zero targets, the opportunity and investment case for renewables remains strong.

“Given our depth of experience and approach to active asset management, we are well-positioned to play a leading role in enabling this energy transition.”

Greencoat Renewables was set up and floated in 2017 by Greencoat Capital, the London-based renewable energy asset manager that acts as its investment manager.

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter