Celsia 2Q 2020 Net Profit More Than Doubles Year-on-Year
Medellin-based electric power giant Celsia announced August 10 that its second quarter (2Q) 2020 net profit soared to COP$96.6 billion (US$25.8 million), from COP$43 billion (US$11.5 million) in 2Q 2019.
As for first-half (1H) 2020, consolidated net profit hit COP$183 billion (US$48.9 million), up sharply from COP$96.8 billion (US$25.8 million) in 1H 2019.
While profits are up, 2Q 2020 consolidated revenues still dipped 2.4% year-on-year, to COP$891 billion (US$238 million).
“The decrease in revenues is the result of a lower consolidated generation that reached 971 GWh [gigawatt-hours] with a reduction of 18.1% compared to 1Q 2020 in Colombia, due to lower water contributions and the greater need for [maintaining] reservoir [levels], and in Central America due to the dry period and the lower energy demand due to the [Covid-19 quarantine] preventive isolation period,” according to Celsia.
In the latest quarter, “revenues from Colombia represented 90% of the consolidated total and Central America the remaining 10%,” according to Celsia.
“In Colombia, the retail market [division] sold 769 GWh, a decrease of 12.2% compared to the first quarter [2020] as a result of the [Covid-19 quarantine] that had an effect on energy demand in both the regulated and non-regulated sectors,” according to Celsia.
Consolidated EBITDA for 2Q 2020 was COP$312.4 billion (US$83.5 million), down 5.5% from 1Q 2020 but up 8.8% compared to 2Q 2019. However, the year-on-year EBITDA figures “are not comparable due to operations carried out in 2019,” according to Celsia.
For 1H 2020 so far this year, EBITDA has hit COP$643 billion (US$172 million), including a COP$13 billion (US$3.5 million) gain from divestment of its former Zona Franca Celsia power plant.
During the current Covid-19 health crisis, “relief programs deployed by the company to support customers totaled COP$73 billion [US$19.5 million] and relief to suppliers totaled COP$50 billion [US$13.4 million],” according to the company.
“In social support programs during the [Covid-19] contingency, Celsia has donated COP$10.44 billion [US$2.8 million] in initiatives that have reached 73 hospitals and health institutions and 14,000 nutritional kits to communities neighboring its operation,” the company added..
“At the end of June [2020], 373,403 clients availed themselves of the different payment facility schemes for [electric power] consumption for a value of COP$32 billion [US$8.5 million]. Similarly, 623,156 invoices from [low-income] strata 1 and 2 in the months of April, May and June received a 10% discount that represented COP$2.4 billion [US$641,000]” in customer savings.
To offset subsidies to lower-income customers and suppliers during the Covid crisis, Celsia cut other spending by COP$27 billion (US$7 million), according to the company.
The company closed 2Q 2020 with consolidated debt of COP$4.4 trillion (US$1.17 billion) and a debt-to-EBITDA leverage ratio of 3.1-times.
During 2Q 2020, the company obtained net credits totaling COP$415 billion (US$110 million) “to maintain financial flexibility during Covid-19 and COP$40 billion [US$111 million] for the development of the San Andrés de Cuerquia [small-scale hydropower project in Antioquia, Colombia] and the Comayagua solar-power project in Honduras,” according to the company.
