Spanish renewable energy giant Iberdrola SA reported first-half earnings that met analyst estimates, driven by the recovery of hydropower output in Spain and continued support from its generation and customer business.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose to €7.6 billion ($8.4 billion) in the first half, the Bilbao-based utility said Thursday. That compares with a €7.55 billion average estimate by five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.
Iberdrola, Europe’s largest producer of wind energy, has gone on a selling spree over the past year, divesting stakes in units in Spain, Brazil and elsewhere as it seeks to reduce its cost of capital amid a jump in global interest rates, while also raising funds to cut leverage.
On Wednesday, the company announced an agreement to sell 49% of its Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm to United Arab Emirates clean-energy producer Masdar for €375 million. It has sold stakes in its Spanish onshore unit, Brazilian transmission lines and Mexican gas plants — the latter of which was the world’s biggest utility-sector deal this year, at $6 billion.
In its home market of Spain, Iberdrola benefited from a 52% increase in hydropower production in the second quarter, relative to a year earlier. Solar production in the country surged 41% in the three-month period, to 968 gigawatt-hours.
Key earnings metrics:
- Gross margin: €12.2 billion
- Revenue: €26.3 billion
- Networks business ebitda: €3.13 billion
- Electricity production and customers business ebitda: €4.5 billion
