Utility firm Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) posted Monday a net profit of $3.2 billion (AED 11.6 billion) for the first quarter of 2023, a surge of $2.6 billion (AED 9.6 billion) from the same period last year, mainly driven by a one-off gain from the company's acquisition of a 5% stake in the gas subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).
Revenues for the first quarter rose 6% year-on-year to $3.6 billion (AED 13.1 billion), led by higher pass-through bulk supply tariffs, while adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) went down 5% to $1.4 billion (AED 5.3 billion), TAQA said in a statement.
The utility company said its capital expenditure climbed 26% year-on-year to $297 million (AED 1.1 billion). The Abu Dhabi-based firm said free cash flow generation was at $1.2 billion (AED 4.3 billion), 31% higher than the previous year, despite the spike in expenditures.
Gross debt stood at $16.3 billion (AED 59.8 billion), down from $16.8 billion (AED 61.7 billion) in the previous quarter.
The company's board proposed an interim cash dividend of $199 billion (AED 731 million), or $0.2 (AED 0.7) per share.
"[TAQA's] shareholders approved a new dividend policy for 2023 – 2025 which is based on a combination of fixed and variable dividends and will offer attractive returns to our shareholders and is in line with our evolving business model,” said Jasim Husain Thabet, TAQA’s group CEO and managing director, in a statement.
