More generation helps utility EnBWs Q1 as it cuts imports from Russia

div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpFRANKFURT Reuters – EnBW, Germanys thirdlargest energy firm, said on Friday it nearly doubled its quarterly profit after a weak first quarter of 2021 thanks to strong performance at its generation unit as it worked to reduce its dependence on Russian energy.p

pEnBW, whose VNG unit is one of Germanys largest importers of Russian gas, said its net profit attributable to shareholders jumped around 90 to 606.3 million euros 628.37 million as earnings at its generation unit more than doubled.pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

pThe group said it had to ramp up trading and make greater use of conventional power plants to safeguard security of supply amid Russias war in Ukraine, which boosted its earnings and allowed it to confirm 2022 targets.p

p“We are working flat out to substitute purchases of Russian gas and coal,” finance chief Thomas Kusterer said in a statement, referring to the EUs plans to ban Russian coal from midAugust as part of sanctions after Russias invasion of Ukraine.p

p“Regarding gas, too, we are working hard towards a significant diversification of supply sources, above all by expanding our LNG activities,” the CFO said.p

pMost recently, EnBW said it would buy 3 billion cubic metres of gas a year from a liquefied natural gas LNG terminal planned at the northern German port of Stade on the Elbe river.p

pEnBW also said its renewable energy business made a largerthanexpected contribution to earnings thanks to windy weather in Germany over the first three months of 2022, and the addition of more renewable generation capacity.p

p1 0.9649 eurosp

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pp Reporting by Zuzanna Szymanska, editing by Kirsti Knollep

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