Electric services company Centrica said on Thursday that it had delivered a “strong” operational performance in the six months ended 30 June, with adjusted earnings surging against a backdrop of “high and volatile” commodity prices.
Adjusted underlying earnings skyrocketed 143% to £1.66bn, adjusted operating profits surged 412% to £1.34bn and adjusted earnings per share shot up to 11.0p from 1.7p at the same time a year earlier.
However, on a statutory basis, Centrica swung from an operating profit of £1.0bn in 2021 to a loss of £1.09bn a year later, due to a £1.9bn loss on net re-measurements after taxation.
Despite this, Centrica declared an interim dividend of 1.0p per share after opting not to return anything to shareholders in the form of dividends at the same time twelve months earlier.
Centrica added that it had seen an improved performance across much of the group, with strong exploration and production and nuclear volumes, effective commodity and risk management in its energy marketing and trading unit and improved net promoter scores in its British gas energy and British gas services and solutions divisions.
Chief executive Chris O’Shea said: “The past year has demonstrated the importance of well-funded, well-run energy companies. We’ve made significant progress de-risking the group and building a stronger business for the benefit of all stakeholders.
“This strength has allowed us to lead the industry in measures to protect and support customers through the most challenging energy crisis in living memory and the benefit of our balanced portfolio can be seen in our first half performance. We expect this to continue into the second half, underpinning continued investment in customer service and elsewhere in our portfolio.”
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
