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Electrabel moves 1.2 billion euros profit to French mother Engie

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04 mei 2022

08:18

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Although Electrabel pays 1.24 billion euros to the French parent company Engie, the energy company promises that the nuclear piggy bank is protected.

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Thanks to the good performance of the Belgian nuclear power plants, higher market prices and more customers, Electrabel delivered a good performance last year. Including the foreign subsidiaries from the Netherlands to Brazil, the energy group’s operating profit rose from 2.5 billion euros in 2020 to 3.4 billion euros in 2021. Electrabel therefore pays 1.24 billion euros to the French parent company Engie.

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Such profit distributions to Paris by the former power monopolist are traditionally already under scrutiny in our country and in the context of high energy prices, the profits of energy companies are certainly under fire. In addition, Electrabel’s financial health is crucial to pay the multi-billion dollar bill for nuclear waste and the future demolition of the Doel and Tihange.

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Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten (Green) announced last year that she wants to curb Electrabel’s dividends to ensure the company can meet its obligations. The bill would provide that dividend payments must be submitted to the Nuclear Facilities Commission (CNV), which even has a veto right for dividends from 1.5 billion euros. With the dividend of 1.24 billion euros, Electrabel is below that limit.

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The dividend is a normal return for the invested billions of shareholder Engie. This concerns 66 percent of the net result of 1.9 billion euros,” says Patrick Gaussent, the financial director of Electrabel, in an explanation to De Tijd. ‘After a few difficult years, profits are back at the level where they should be.’

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Nuclear piggy bank

Gaussent also emphasizes that in the coming years Electrabel will return money that was set aside for the nuclear clean-up to the ‘nuclear piggy bank’ Synatom. That subsidiary has made provisions for 14.5 billion euros, but a large part of that money was lent to Electrabel. Those money transfers have been regularly criticized in recent years.

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“We will voluntarily return all dismantling provisions to Synatom by 2030. This year it is about 700 million euros’, says Gaussent. Earlier, Electrabel promised to return all the provisions for the management of nuclear waste by 2025. In this way, the group is meeting a demand from Van der Straeten and her planned new law on nuclear provisions to guarantee that the multi-billion dollar piggy bank is better protected and Electrabel does not become an empty box.

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We will voluntarily return all decommissioning provisions to Synatom by 2030.

Patrick Gaussent

CFO Electrabel

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The energy company believes that there should be no concern about the nuclear provisions. “Electrabel’s capital and financial assets amount to 282 percent of what is needed,” says Gaussent. ‘Electrabel’s financial situation has improved: after the dividend payment, the capital has increased by 670 million euros and there is a net cash position.’

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In ‘The morning’ on Radio 1, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open Vld) was asked about the dividend of Electrabel, in times of high energy prices. ‘We have a system of skimming off the high profits, that is the nuclear interest’, the prime minister replied.

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Vilvoorde gas power station

Electrabel also has the capacity to invest some 2 billion euros abroad each year. Investments in our country were at a low level last year at 126 million euros, but there are still green and gas projects in the pipeline. A new gas-fired power station in Vilvoorde saw the promised support fail due to permit problems. ‘We remain convinced of the relevance of that project’, says Gaussent.

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Gaussent kept quiet about the life extension of two nuclear reactors, suddenly requested by the De Croo government. “We already said in 2020 that if there was no decision that year, it would be too late for an extension. Now we have a lot of problems because of the two-year delay. But we are talking to the government to find solutions to that difficult situation. We cannot just take risks without clarity about certain risks’, says Gaussent, referring to possible opposition to public consultations and the problem of nuclear waste.

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The blocking of the commissioning of the new Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia, to which parent company Engie was heavily committed, could also have an impact on Electrabel. The Belgian company indirectly borrowed 705 million euros, a sum that cannot be repaid. The possible impact remains limited. “Because Engie has vouched for it, we’ll be able to recover most of it. We may lose 10 to 15 percent of the amount,” says Gaussent.

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