E.ON Earnings on Track for Upper End of 2018 Guidance

German utility E.On reported November 14 adjusted pre-tax earnings for the first nine months of the year of roughly €2.4bn ($2.7bn), 11% higher than last year owing in part to seasonal factors. It expects full-year adjusted pre-tax earnings to be at the upper end of its previously stated guidance of €2.8bn-€3.0bn; and €1.3bn-€1.5bn for adjusted net income.

CFO Marc Spieker affirmed the company’s forecast for the 2018 financial year: "After three quarters our earnings were again higher. All the key figures and developments – primarily at our core businesses of Energy Networks, Customer Solutions, and Renewables – are fully in line with our plan."

Operating cash flow of €3.5bn was €6.6bn above the same period last year. In July 2017 E.On paid €10.3bn into Germany’s public fund to finance nuclear-waste disposal. This amount was partially offset, among other items, by the circa €2.85bn nuclear-fuel-tax refund that the company received in June 2017.

E.on reduced its economic net debt by a fifth to roughly €15.4bn, thanks mainly to funds from the sale of its stake in Uniper.

Net income attributable to E.On shareholders in 9M2018 was €2.92bn, down 21% year on year  from €3.7bn.

The merger with Innogy, due for completion next year, is expected to yield €600mn-€800mn in synergies from 2022 forward and the new company, to be called E.on, will be strongly customer-focused, and talks have begun on their post-merger activities: "These decisions will help ensure that the new E.on is customer-oriented and can make an important contribution to the success of the energy transition and to climate protection in Europe," said Spieker.