EON Confident For 2018 After Q3 In The Black

German energy giant EON said Wednesday it was confident of hitting its full-year targets after a strong set of third-quarter results and as it pushes on with a complex restructuring.

Frankfurt am Main, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Nov, 2018 ) :German energy giant EON said Wednesday it was confident of hitting its full-year targets after a strong set of third-quarter results and as it pushes on with a complex restructuring.

The Essen-based group -- which in recent years has suffered massive losses linked to the restructuring and to Germany's retreat from nuclear power -- reported a net profit of 247 million Euros ($279 million) between July and September, compared with a loss in the same quarter last year.

Adjusted operating, or underlying profit grew 17 percent year-on-year, to 410 million euros, although revenues fell 13 percent to 7.3 billion.

Over the first nine months to September, adjusted operating profit rose 11 percent to 2.4 billion euros as EON booked higher sales and brought new wind farms online.

The group also managed to shrink its debt mountain by 3.9 billion euros, to 15.4 billion, after selling its stake in former fossil fuels subsidiary Uniper to Finland's Fortum.

EON is changing drastically as it prepares to integrate renewable energy firm Innogy.

The purchase is part of a complex transaction with its biggest homegrown rival RWE announced in March, which still needs a green light from German competition authorities.

If the takeover goes through, the energy map of Europe and Germany will be redrawn as RWE focuses on energy production from both traditional and renewable sources, while EON's strength lies in distribution and sales.

RWE on Wednesday reported an adjusted operating profit of 1.3 billion euros for the first nine months of 2018, down from 1.7 billion over the same period in 2017.

Looking ahead, both EON and RWE confirmed their full-year targets.

EON expects an adjusted operating profit "in the upper half" of a range between 2.8 and 3.0 billion euros, and a net profit between 1.3 and 1.5 billion.

RWE said it continues to expect an adjusted operating profit between 1.4 and 1.7 billion euros, and a net profit of 500 to 800 million euros.