• This figure is up 23.9% on the net profit for the previous year, without considering non-recurring effects.
• The EBITDA posted by Nortegas was €178 million, 3.4% up on the previous year.
• The company’s revenue stood at €223 million, 3% down on the previous year, mainly due to the higher temperatures recorded in the geographical areas where it operates.
• The distributor continues to drive research and development in projects that position natural gas as a key energy source for the energy transition, by means of the reuse of biogas or researching different energy uses for hydrogen.

Nortegas, the second natural gas distributor in Spain, has released its main business and financial figures for 2019. The company ended the year strongly, having consolidated both its finances and operations.

In 2019, Nortegas’s net profit was €57 million, which meant growth of 23.9% on 2019, without taking non-recurring effects into account.

The company’s income stood at €223 million, 3% down on the previous year, mainly due to the warmer climatic conditions in 2019 than the year before. In turn, the EBITDA posted by Nortegas was €178 million, 3.4% up on the previous year. Nortegas obtained an operating cash flow after investments of €155 million (€140 million in 2018).

The group’s financial policy, based on the shareholders’ commitment to maintaining a sustainable financing structure, has allowed Nortegas to retain a solid investment grade rating, which has been ratified by Standard & Poor’s.

The positive evolution of the figures further endorses the management team’s strategy, along with the strength of the company’s business and its stability within the areas where it operates.

Business growth and commitment to stability

Nortegas had 1,035,062 customers at year-end 2019, up 0.9% year-on-year. The growth was mainly from the residential-commercial segment, i.e., households and small & medium-sized companies. Furthermore, the volume of vehicular natural gas through its distribution networks grew by 1.8% compared to 2018.

The distributor has consolidated its commitment to ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) sustainability criteria, with the aim of being a benchmark in the energy transition of society. Therefore, Nortegas has signed up to the UN Global Compact to work on achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The distributor likewise continues to drive research and development in projects that position natural gas as a key energy source for the energy transition, by means of the reuse of biogas or researching different energy uses for hydrogen.

Nortegas and Covid-19

Nortegas reacted to the Covid-19 health crisis with the immediately setting up of a Coordination Committee tasked with daily monitoring of the situation to ensure the correctly supply of an essential commodity such as natural gas.

From the activation of the State of Alarm, the distributor has implemented a contingency plan which includes the highest levels of prevention, in keeping with those set by the health authorities, to guarantee 100% of the service at all its points.

In the same vein, during the last two months, Nortegas has deployed different initiatives in order to minimise the social and economic impact of the Covid-19 health crisis. These include cash payments for its 629 suppliers to ease their cash flows during the time of the crisis, more flexible payment terms  of LPG bills for the self-employed, SMES and institutions helping Covid-19 vulnerable groups (hospitals, homes for the elderly, care homes, religious centres) and the donation of 52,500 kg of food to the food banks of the three autonomous regions where it is present.

Nortegas expects the Covid-19 crisis to have a limited effect on its business, partly due to the nature of its services and to its strong liquidity position. Ninety-nine percent of the distributor’s income is regulated and no impact is envisaged on the demand for or price of natural gas.