Paulo Cunha / LUSA
Storm Kristin was exceptional. The infrastructure has already existed in places “for decades” and it is necessary to pay to increase resilience.
The executive president (CEO) of EDP warned of the need to carry out an in-depth analysis of future measures to increase resilience from the power grid in the event of storms, warning that can increase costs for consumers.
Miguel Stilwell d’Andrade, who spoke at the conference call about EDP’s quarterly results, responded to a question about the study that is underway on this matter, remembering that, after the storms, there was a debate about whether, for example, lines should be buried to increase resilience.
“What I can say is that the Storm Kristin was exceptional“, he highlighted, pointing out that the infrastructure has already existed in the locations “for decades” and has “faced bad weather” without this type of consequence.
According to the CEO of EDP, there are cases in which it may make sense bury the lines, but in others not.
“There are other ways to increase resilience rather than just burying lines”, he indicated, pointing out solutions such as redundancies or other types of technologies.
“A good cost-benefit analysis is needed, because if we want to increase resilience this comes at a cost“, he highlighted.
“It is necessary to have this under control so that consumers do not end up having to bear the costs“, he highlighted, indicating that the results of these studies should be known by the end of this year.
During the presentation of the results to analysts, EDP pointed out an impact on investment of around 20 million euros in rebuilding infrastructure due to storms.
In total, in the networks of the Iberian Peninsula, EDP’s investment (Capex) increased by 40% in the first quarter, to 164 million euros, in annual terms, according to data revealed by EDP.
EDP still expects an increase in investment in the Iberian Peninsula, but it depends on the study’s conclusions.
The company rose still the goals for this year, pointing to a recurring EBITDA (profit before taxes, interest, depreciation and amortization) of 5.2 billion euros, an increase of 5% compared to the previous estimate, and profits of close to 1.3 billion euros.
Quarterly accounts
O EDP profit fell 12% in the first quarter of the year, to 378 million euros, a variation that is mainly justified by the reduction in electricity sales prices in Portugal and Spain.
The recurring net result until March down 9% in annual terms, to 399 million euros, according to a statement sent this Wednesday to the Securities Market Commission (CMVM).
“This variation compared to the same period last year mainly reflects the reduction observed in electricity sales prices in Portugal and Spain”, explains the company.
Until March, the THE EVENTS fell 3% to 1,376 million euros.
Os net operating costs showed a reduction of 3% on a recurring basis, reflecting the continued focus on operational efficiency, while net financial costs increased by 7%, impacted by the increase in the average cost of debt.
A net debt totaled 15.7 billion euros, an increase of 2% compared to the end of 2025, which reflects “the investment made and organic cash flow generated, as well as the appreciation of the Brazilian Real against the euro in the quarter”, according to the note to the market.
