Terna's shareholders' meeting has given the green light to the budget 2017 closed with a group net profit of 688,3 million euros (+8,7%). 63,564% of the capital is present.
Ok also al dividend. The company will disburse a total of 22 cents per share, of which 7,4263 cents already paid last November as an advance. The coupon of the balance will be detached on 18 June, with payment two days later. With the distribution of the total coupon, Cdp Reti, which owns 29,85% of Terna's capital, cashed a check for 132 million.
The 2017 results "are in line with the growth trend of recent years, confirming the solidity of Terna's business and the determination to achieve the objectives outlined in the new Strategic Plan" commented the CEO Luigi Ferraris during the meeting, underlining that the data "confirm that 2017 was a year of further growth for Terna".
The CEO then spoke about the future stating that growth will continue also in the years to come: "in the new 2018-2022 Strategic Plan we have set ambitious objectives and defined the following mission: to play a leading role for a sustainable energy transition, leveraging innovation, skills and distinctive technologies for the benefit of all stakeholders" . Ferraris recalled how the Plan defines “a new dividend policy which will ensure constant and predictable growth, as well as full visibility over the next five years. In particular, from 2018 to 2020 a dividend per share is expected with an average annual growth of 6% compared to the dividend pertaining to 2017. For the years 2021 and 2022 a payout of 75% is expected, with a minimum dividend in any case guaranteed equal to the dividend for the year 2020″.
The president of Terna is also satisfied, Catia Bastioli who, opening the shareholders' meeting, highlighted how the 2017 results "together with the skills and capital we have, as well as fueling Terna's reputational capital, constitute an excellent basis for building and overcoming the challenges of the coming years service of our country".
"In continuity with the past - continued Bastioli - this year too we present the results of a growing Group and increasingly aware of having a crucial role for the entire electricity sector, which, in turn, is a key factor for decarbonisation of the economy and the regeneration of territories, with their specificities and natural resources. From this point of view of changing the development model in terms of efficient use of resources, maximization of renewable resources and multiplication of production and consumption points, the electricity sector is experiencing a phase of strong transition in which investments in grids are of particular importance intelligent and in the monitoring and control of the network of prosumers”.
FIBER: 200 MILLION INVESTMENTS IN 5 YEARS
The CEO Ferraris, answering a question on investments in optical fiber, stated: “We are investing in optical fiber because it is useful for us, for our business and also as a commercial opportunity. We make the infrastructure available, let's say in housing, to operators such as Open Fiber or Telecom, anyone who wants. Over the next 5 years we plan to invest 200 million euros and we expect to bring home a cumulative ebitda of 170 million euros,” he added.
TERNA IN THE STOCK EXCHANGE
"I am pleased to report" that "since the beginning of the year, Terna's stock has recorded a positive performance of +3,6%, better than both the reference European sector index (DJ Stoxx Utilities +2,9%), that of the main peers (Snam -2,6%, National Grid -3,4%, Red Electrica -6,7%). What's more, yesterday, May 3, the share reached its highest since the beginning of 2018 at 5,016 euros per share".
With reference to last year, Ferraris recalled that the share "recorded an appreciation of 2017% in 11,3, better than both the European sector index of reference (DJ Stoxx Utilities +5,5%) and the main stocks comparable. Considering the impact of the dividends paid during the year in addition to the stock market performance, the stock guaranteed a total return for the shareholder of 15,9%, also in this case outperforming both the European sector index and the main peers ( Snam +9,5%, Red Electrica +9,4%, National Grid -4,2%)".
100 KM OF OBSOLETE LINES REMOVED
In 2017, Terna removed around 100 km of obsolete lines. This was stated by the president Bastioli, specifying that "taking into account the environmental and social impacts of our grid development activities which resulted in the physical removal of numerous portions of now obsolete lines: around 100 in 2017, in line with the previous years, for a total of over 1.000 kilometers of lines removed since 2010, with clear positive effects in terms of reducing the visual impact and land use”.
"In the face of these removals - he continued - in 2017 alone we returned 115 lands to their respective owners".
