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(Alliance News) - SSE PLC on Tuesday said it is maintaining its full-year earnings per share guidance, reflecting the impact of both Covid-19 and weather conditions on production.
The Perth, Scotland-based gas & electricity company said it still expects adjusted earnings per share for the financial year ending on Wednesday in a range of 85 pence to 90p, which it first guided for last month.
In financial 2020, SSE recorded adjusted EPS of 83.6p, meaning its financial 2021 results will be up by 1.7% to 7.7%.
Weather conditions have resulted in shortfall in output from renewable sources worsening to around 9% below plan as at March 23, from 5% below in the nine months to the end of December, it said.
Shares in SSE were down 0.9% at 1,442.50p in London on Tuesday.
However, SSE expects Covid-19 to achieve adjusted operating profit of around GBP180 million for the full-year, which is in the bottom half of its GBP150 million to GBP250 million range.
Due to this, earnings guidance was held, and SSE intends to recommend a full-year dividend of 80p per share plus the annual increase in the UK retail prices index. SSE said it plans to increase its dividend through to 2023 in line with RPI, according to its five-year plan.
"It has been a uniquely challenging year for us all, but, thanks to strong operational performance and delivery against our net-zero strategy throughout 2020/21, we are on course to meet our financial objectives for the year," said SSE Finance Director Gregor Alexander.
Meanwhile, the UK Competition & Markets Authority has rejected SSE's appeal of changes to the calculation of charges paid by electricity generators, including SSE, for use of the electricity transmission system.
SSE said earlier this month it planned to appeal "certain elements" of Ofgem's changes, arguing they could have led to transmission charges being outside the range allowed under the relevant law.
The CMA decided that Ofgem was not wrong to have approved the changes, explaining the changes make a breach of the law in 2021 to 2022 to be much less likely, and that further changes were expected to take effect by April 1, 2022.
By Zoe Wickens; zoewickens@alliancenews.com
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