Taqa Group’s net income up 37% to Dhs2 billion in Q1 of this year

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa), one of the largest listed integrated utilities in the region, reported consolidated financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2022.

Taqa delivered strong performance underpinned by its stable regulated and contracted utilities businesses and boosted by higher commodity prices.

Group revenues of Dhs12.4 billion, 20 per cent higher than the prior-year period, primarily due to higher commodity prices within the Oil & Gas segment.

Adjusted Ebitda was Dhs5.6 billion, up 20 per cent, mainly reflecting higher revenues as well as improved income from associates, partially offset by higher expenses.

Net income (Taqa-share) was Dhs2 billion, 37 per cent higher than the prior-year period, with greater contribution from the Oil & Gas segment.

Capital expenditure was D 868 million, 31 per cent lower than the prior-year period, mainly driven by lower expenditure in the Transmission & Distribution segment.

Free cash flows of Dhs3.3 billion, 5 per cent lower than the same period last year, maintaining significant liquidity (Dhs19.3 billion in cash and cash equivalents and undrawn corporate credit facilities).

Gross debt of Dhs63.9 billion, down from Dhs65.0 billion at the end of 2021, further improving the Group’s credit metrics.

Transmission network availability for power and water of 98.0 per cent, flat to the prior-year period.

Generation global technical availability of 84.0 per cent, lower compared to 88.7 per cent from the prior-year period, mainly due to planned and unplanned maintenance within the UAE fleet. Oil & Gas average production volumes increased to 126.9 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), an increase of 5 per cent, driven by higher production in Europe.

Upon approval of the financial results, Taqa’s Board of Directors also declared a first interim cash dividend for the year of Dhs675 million (0.60 fils per share), in line with the Company’s dividend policy.

Jasim Husain Thabet, Taqa’s Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, commented: “Taqa’s solid financial results for the first quarter of 2022 demonstrate the value of our agile and robust business model, and more importantly, provide an excellent foundation for our strategic growth plans.

We started the year by issuing a green bond linked to our first solar PV plant, which was oversubscribed by international investors. The bond is listed on the London Stock Exchange with a secondary listing on the ADX. In the UAE, we announced a partnership with Etisalat Digital to enhance digital capabilities and customer experience for our power and water customers across Abu Dhabi, as well as expressing an interest to acquire EGA’s power generation assets to boost Taqa’s UAE capacity.

The current market conditions further advance our positioning to actively pursue organic and inorganic growth opportunities in the UAE and abroad and make the Taqa a competitive investor that is agile and able to swiftly execute.”

The full set of financial disclosures can be found within the Investor Relations section on Taqa’s website.

HYDROGEN PROJECTS: The green hydrogen projects of Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) are progressing very well, a senior executive told the Emirates News Agency (WAM), adding that green hydrogen, dubbed as the oil of the future, will play a significant role in the company’s growing portfolio of renewables.

“We are currently in the techno feasibility stage of the two green hydrogen projects [that were announced in partnership with two local entities],” said Farid Al Awlaqi, Executive Director of Generation at Taqa, one of the largest listed integrated utilities in the region.

He was referring to Taqa’s partnership with Emirates Steel, the leading integrated steel plant in the Middle East, to develop a large-scale green hydrogen project enabling the first green steel produced in the Mena region. The second project is a partnership with Abu Dhabi Ports to develop an industrial scale green ammonia manufacturing and export facility in Abu Dhabi.

Asked about the start of the projects, Al Awlaqi said, “There’s no specific date that I can give you right now, but we are in advanced stages already. So, hopefully, you’ll be hearing something very soon.”

He spoke to WAM in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the World Utilities Congress 2022 that concluded on Wednesday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec).

Taqa had announced that green hydrogen will form a valuable part of the company’s 2030 strategy for growth, which includes growing its gross power capacity from 18 gigawatt (GW) to 30 GW in the UAE and adding up to 15 GW internationally. This increase in capacity will focus on renewable energy — particularly solar PV — to comprise more than 30 per cent of its generation portfolio by 2030, up from the current 5 per cent.