Taqa more than doubles net profit in 2018 on higher revenues

Robust performance of the company's power and water division as well as higher commodity prices boosted profits

The Atrush oilfield in Kurdistan, Iraq. The company last achieved a million barrels of monthly production in July. Courtesy: Taqa

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, or Taqa, more than doubled its net profit in 2018 from the previous year, dues to increase in revenue driven by higher oil prices in Europe and the strong performance of its power and water division.

Net profit attributable to equity holders rose to Dh396m in 2018, while revenues increased 6 per cent to Dh17.7 billion compared to the same period in 2017, the company said in a statement of its preliminary results to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, where its shares are traded.

"Taqa's robust strategy to maximise our capabilities across a diverse portfolio of assets and activities as well as the execution of our growth plans in power and water and across all our divisions has yielded visible results," chief executive Saeed Al Dhaheri said.

The company attributed the rise in revenues to its full-year oil and gas production in Iraq compared with only six months’ of output the year before, which impacted its hydrocarbons business positively. Taqa's total assets were Dh99.4bn at the end of last year and earnings per share was Dh0.07.

Taqa, in which utilities regulator Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority holds a majority stake, had profitable quarterly performances last year on the back of improved commodity prices.

In an interview with The National, AbdulAziz Al Obaidli, vice president of Taqa UAE, GCC and India, said the company would generate 10 per cent of its portfolio from renewable energy sources by 2030, as it looks to expand its footprint in the Middle East, North and sub-Saharan Africa.

Gross power generation production last year was  89,922 gigawatt hours while gross water desalination was 246,556 million Imperial Gallons. Technical availability of power plants rose to 93.1 per cent last year from 92.1 per cent in 2018, which the company credited to “stable operational performance” in the UAE and in Africa.

Last year, Taqa's independent power and water plants produced 85 per cent of power and 95 per cent of water consumed in Abu Dhabi.

Average output from Taqa owned and operated concessions stood at around 123,100 barrels of oil equivalent, a slight decrease by 2.5 per cent from the previous year.