MILAN, Nov 22 (Reuters) – Enel ( ENI.MI ) plans to sell assets worth about 21 billion euros ($21.5 billion) to cut debt and focus its transition to clean energy in six key countries, the said the Italian on Tuesday.
The process of exiting Argentina and Peru and selling assets in Romania has already been done and the majority of the project plan should be completed by the end of next year, the authorities said while they give the update of 2023-25.
The state-controlled group expects to invest 37 billion euros in the next three years in its six main markets of Italy, Spain, America, Brazil, Chile and Colombia.
One of the strongest green companies in the world, Enel also confirmed its plans to become carbon neutral by 2040 as it moves away from fossil fuels to a greater use of renewables.
The sector expects to add about 21 gigawatts (GW) of installed renewable capacity by 2025, an increase of about 40% in terms present.
Setting plans to create a more agile company, CEO Francesco Starace said the group could choose to list their American business in 2024 or partner with a fund.
Starace, who is 67 years old and has led Enel since 2014, has indicated that he wants to stay on after his term ends next year.
“I like this job, it’s a very good job,” he told investigators, and it’s up to the shareholders to stay.
Shares in Enel, which have lost about a quarter of their value this year, were up 1.5% in late morning trading. Analysts welcomed the plan update but executives were asked at the presentation how the company could grow profits. the business is declining.
THE GRAIN FROM THE GASKET
Enel expects to reduce its debt to 51-52 billion euros at the end of 2023 from 69 billion at the end of September.
Starace told analysts that the turmoil in energy markets meant that Enel needed to return to better financial ratios.
However, he said the current high prices should help justify the value of his gas assets.
An agreement to exit Enel’s gas business in Chile could be made by the end of this year, Starace said, adding that it would lead to the sale of its Spanish gas.
Enel controls Spanish utility Endesa ( ELE.MC ), with a 70% stake.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine underscores the importance of independent energy, Starace added.
He cited the expansion of a solar plant in Sicily as an example of this and added that a similar project is being considered in the United States.
Enel pledged to reward investors with a dividend of 0.43 euros per year for the period 2023-2025, from 0.40 euros in 2022.
The 0.43 euros per share in 2024 and 2025 should be considered a floor that can be improved, Enel said.
The normal EBITDA should grow between 22.2 billion and 22.8 billion billion in 2025 from 19.0 billion-19.6 billion billion for 2022, the group said. ($1 = 0.9761 euros)
Reporting by Francesca Landini; written by Keith Weir; directed by Kirsten Donovan and Jason Neely
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