Dividendo
Naturgy reported a net profit of 1,986 million euros for 2023, a rise of 20.4% from the 1,649 million euros earned the previous year. The company reached a new profit record in a year marked by lower energy prices and high market volatility. “The results surpassed expectations. We finished well above the market guidance and managed to improve our debt ratio,” stated the president, Francisco Reynés, during the results press conference.
The gross operating profit, EBITDA, stood at 5,475 million euros in 2023, a 10.5% increase, maintaining a balanced mix between regulated and liberalised activities, which accounted for about 47% and 53% of the consolidated EBITDA respectively. Just over half of the EBITDA was generated in Spain.
Improved cash flow allowed the company to keep net debt steady at 12,090 million euros while increasing investments. The leading gas and third-largest electricity supplier in the country boosted investments to 2,944 million euros, up 53%. Of this amount, 90% was allocated primarily to renewable project developments (1,730 million euros) and networks (900 million euros).
In renewables, the group’s installed capacity rose by 1 gigawatt (GW) in 2023, bringing total capacity to 6.5 GW. The company continued to grow within its strategy in Spain, Australia, and the United States.
In Spain, capacity grew by 575 MW through new capacity start-ups and the integration of ASR wind (422 MW). In Australia, wind capacity increased by 109 MW along with 10 MW of battery storage. In the United States, the 7V Solar Ranch plant, located in Texas, began its test operations. With 300 MW, it stands as the largest solar plant the group has built.
Naturgy expects its growth in renewables to accelerate in the coming years, with up to 1.2 GW and 2.3 GW of additional capacity entering service in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
But the gas segment remains a key part of the portfolio, contributing to electricity generation through combined-cycle plants as well as gas operations. Reynés highlighted the company’s interest in biogas. “We are in a phase of investment committed to the energy transition; all we ask is time—time from society, the media, and regulation,” he noted.
From the outset of the 2021-2025 Plan until the end of last year, the energy group had generated an aggregated EBITDA of 13,958 million euros, invested 6,430 million, distributed a total of 3,908 million in dividends to shareholders, and contributed 3,177 million euros in taxes and duties.