Taqa’s third-quarter profit jumps 60% on higher oil prices

The company's revenue from oil and gas operations surged 61 per cent

The Taqa display at World Future Energy Summit at Adnec. Victor Besa / The National

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, better known as Taqa, reported a jump of almost 60 per cent in third-quarter profit as it benefited from higher oil prices.

Net profit attributable to equity holders for the three months to the end of September rose to Dh2.23 billion ($610 million), the company said on Monday in a filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, where its shares are traded.

Total revenue during the period jumped by more than 14 per cent to Dh13.70bn, with revenue from oil and gas operations surging 61 per cent to Dh2.71bn.

Taqa’s board declared an interim cash dividend of Dh675m, or 0.60 fils per share. This will be the third quarterly dividend payment for the financial year of 2022, in line with the company’s dividend policy.

The company's net profit in the first nine months of 2022 rose 53 per cent to Dh6.52bn as group revenue climbed 14 per cent to Dh38.67bn during the same period.

Capital expenditure for the nine-month period dropped 28 per cent annually to Dh2.5bn, Taqa said.

“The first nine months of 2022 saw Taqa Group deliver another set of strong financial results, reflecting strong performance across all our businesses,” said chief executive Jasim Thabet.

Last month, the company said it would sell its upstream oil and gas assets in the Netherlands to Waldorf Energy following a year-long strategic review.

Oil prices have gained in recent weeks, mostly due to an Opec+ move to reduce output by 2 million barrels per day.

Looming sanctions on Russian crude and prospects of an oil demand rebound in China, the world’s second largest economy, have kept prices at over $95 a barrel.

Brent, the global benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, has gained more than 17 per cent in the past 12 months.

Taqa plans to achieve a 25 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions across its portfolio of assets by the end of this decade.

The move is part of a comprehensive 2030 environmental, social and governance strategy, which the company said was a credible step towards achieving its net zero ambitions by 2050.

“I am also pleased to note that we have continued to demonstrate our commitment to our growth strategy and ESG,” said Mr Thabet

Taqa, one of the largest listed integrated utilities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa region by market value, has significant investments in power and water generation, as well as in the oil and gas sector.

It plans to invest Dh40bn in infrastructure development as it looks to add about 27 gigawatts of power capacity by the end of this decade.

Under its 2030 strategy launched last year, the company plans to expand its power-generation capacity in the UAE to 30 gigawatts and its global generating capacity by 15 gigawatts.

It aims to generate more than 30 per cent of its power from renewable sources by 2030, from 5 per cent in 2021.

The UAE, the Arab world’s second-largest economy, aims to become carbon neutral by 2050. It is investing Dh600bn in developing new clean energy projects to reach the target.