Italian developer Falck Renewables reported a 38% drop in pre-tax profit due to lower electricity prices and changes to incentives.
Pre-tax profit in the first quarter was €15.6m, compared with €25.1m a year ago, due to a significant reduction in average power prices in Italy, Spain and the UK as well as lower wind production, it said.
Falck said the market in which it operates is undergoing a profound change as subsidies are reviewed and rules to make renewable energy more competitive are introduced.
The company will seek to address these changes and the drop in power consumption in a new business plan in autumn, it said.
“I am very satisfied with the period results, achieved in an extremely challenging market context that saw a record low quarterly average energy prices and new regulatory interventions in Italy, the United Kingdom and France, which penalized the sector,” chief executive Toni Volpe said.
“The group responded positively and, thanks to a constant control of costs and good production recorded in Italy and France, it managed to keep its high margins.”
The company, which operates 725.7MW of clean energy plants, maintained its ebitda guidance for the year and said it will seek to limit operating costs. It will benefit from the opening of the 34MW Spaldington and Kingsburn wind farms in Britain from June.
Image: Falck
