Increased renewables capacity and higher earnings from international electricity generation have driven up German utility RWE’s financial results for 2023.
In the latest announcement of its preliminary financial results, RWE announced that the adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) in the onshore wind and solar segment increased by 50.9% to €1.25 billion (US$1.35 billion) in 2023, up from €827 million in 2022.
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The increase was driven by the acquisition of Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses in the US. RWE expanded its US portfolio of solar PV and wind projects to 8GW after the acquisition. The transaction was valued at US$6.8 billion, the financing for which was secured through debt instruments and an equity raise by RWE.
The commissioning of new wind and solar farms, as well as batteries, already contributed to the growth.
The company’s supply and trading division, specialising in procurement, trading, energy-related financial services and private equity investments, also enjoyed significant growth, with its adjusted EBITDA increasing from €1.16 billion in 2022 to €1.58 billion.
The adjusted group-level EBITDA increased from €6.31 billion in 2022 to €8.38 billion in 2023, representing a 32.8% growth.
“We expect to close fiscal 2023 significantly above the previous year. This was mainly due to the higher earnings from the international electricity generation and our strong supply & trading business. Another key driver for our earnings growth is the increased renewables capacity,” said Michael Müller, CFO of RWE.
Looking ahead, the company said lower earnings are expected in 2024 due to the significant drop in energy prices on the European wholesale markets over the last weeks.
RWE updated its “growing green” renewables investment plan in November 2023, aiming to invest €55 billion to expand its green portfolio by 65GW between 2024 and 2030. Since the company launched the programme in 2021, it has expanded its global renewables portfolio from 26GW to 35GW.