Paula María Madrid

Madrid

Updated Tuesday, February 20, 2024-10:54

Enagás

is clear about its priorities and, today, the list is not headed by the dividend, but by the great Spanish dream of green hydrogen. The gas company, which today presented its latest annual results, has announced that

it will cut shareholder remuneration by almost 600 million until 2026

, to focus on carrying out mega-investments linked to new renewable gas, among which the Pedro Sánchez Government's project stands out. to connect Barcelona with Marseille through a large underwater tube, the H2MED, to which the company directed by Arturo Gonzalo Aizpiri is going to dedicate a good part of its investment effort for the next three years.

The profit of Enagás, a company that manages gas infrastructure in Spain,

fell to 342.5 million euros in 2023

, 8.8% compared to the 375.8 million it earned the previous year. Despite the cut, the figure is still well above the annual objective that the company had set, in a range of 310-320 million. And the same has happened with the ebitda (gross operating profit), which amounted to

780.3 million euros

, 2.2% less than in 2022, but above the 770 million that the company had set.

Enagás is clear that, in a world that is beginning to say goodbye to natural gas, its future as a company will depend on its ability to carve out a niche for itself in the new green panorama. The company's big bet is on renewable hydrogen, in part, because the group hopes to take advantage of its infrastructure and its current position as manager of the gas system to play a similar role in the hydrogen ecosystem.

The company has decided to focus on the huge volume of investments planned in its strategic plan, of more than

4.7 billion until 2030

. Although this implies that its shareholders tighten their belts, at least in 2024, 2025 and 2026, years in which Enagás will place the dividend at 1 euro per share, compared to the 1.74 euros planned in its roadmap, a 42% less. Of course, it will maintain the payment of 1.74 euros per title charged to 2023.

Receives 200 million from subsidiaries

Back to the figures, the contribution of the companies in which Enagás has a stake amounted to

199.5 million euros

last year, as a result of the good performance of all the subsidiaries.

The result that Enagás achieved last year was also boosted by the net capital gains received from the closing of the sale of the Morelos gas pipeline, for 42.2 million. While the 2022 profit included the adjustment to the book value of the stake in the American company Tallgrass Energy (TGE) for an amount of 133.8 million euros and the net capital gains from the sale of GNL Quintero (132.1 million euros). and the entry of partners in Enagás Renovable (49 million euros).

Net debt closed 2023 with a reduction of 122 million euros compared to the previous year, standing at 3,347 million euros. The company has specified that more than 80% of its debt is at a fixed rate, which has allowed it to mitigate the impact of current interest rate movements.