Greek energy company Mytilineos has released its financial results for the first half of 2023, with its energy sector posting a total turnover of €1.99 billion.
This turnover accounted for 79% of the company’s total turnover, and was a 22% increase over the first half of 2022. The group’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation increased from €157 million to €303 million over this period, an increase of 92%.
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“The strong financial performance, of the first half of 2023, confirms, once again, the resilience of MYTILINEOS’ business model in the face of constantly changing market conditions, the unprecedented volatility over the past two years as well as the most severe inflationary pressures recorded in recent years,” said Mytilineos chairman and CEO Evangelos Mytilineos.
Growth in renewables portfolio
Much of these profits were driven by growth in the company’s renewables portfolio. In June, Mytilineos acquired a 1.4GW solar portfolio in Canada from Westbridge Renewable Energy, and the company noted that this deal alone was responsible for around one-third of the growth of its clean power portfolio.
This deal is also significant, as it marked Mytilineos’ first involvement in renewable power in North America, following years of investment into European power.
In its 2022 annual report, the company noted that it had invested around €83.1 million into renewable power generation and storage in Europe, compared to €4.3 million into such projects in Chile, Mytilineos’ only investment outside of Europe. The Westbridge Renewable deal cost Mytilineos €1.2 billion, and could encourage further investments in clean power in other jurisdictions.
While the Canadian projects have not yet come online, and Mytilineos expects them to reach commercial operation by 2027, the company still posted impressive renewable power production figures. Between the first half of 2022 and the first half of 2023, the company’s renewable energy production increased from 9TWh to 9.6TWh, while its coal, gas and hydro production all fell over this period.
By the second half of 2023, renewable power accounted for 41% of the company’s energy production, a greater percentage than any other source. Renewables also overtook gas production, which led the company’s energy output in the first half of 2022, and accounted for 36% of power generation.
Looking ahead
Much of Mytilineos’ renewable projects are in the early stages of development. Mytilineos announced that just 0.6GW of its 13.3GW renewable capacity is currently in operation, compared to 1.5GW under construction and 11.1GW of capacity in earlier stages of development, so there is likely to be more growth in years to come.
The company expressed optimism that the start of operations at these projects would drive “significantly higher levels of profitability”. In the short-term, Mytilineos expects the first part of a 1.5GW solar portfolio in Greece to come online this year, adding 135MW of capacity to the company’s portfolio. It also plans to begin construction on the second part of the portfolio this year, which will add an additional 160MW of capacity.
However, part of the company’s portfolio is still tied up in fossil fuels, with the 826MW Agios Nikolaos gas-fired power plant set to come online by the end of this year.
The company was founded in 1908 as a metals and metallurgy firm, and its successful transition to power generation, and then clean power generation, could set a precedent for others in the metals sector.
“The advantages and significant synergies from the coexistence of the energy and metals sectors are becoming more visible being the main drivers behind the company’s growth, despite the monetary tightening conditions and the significant de-escalation of energy prices during the first half of the year,” said Evangelos Mytilineos.