Last checked at 24 Jan 2014 09:00
Jersey Electricity plc
Interim Management Statement
Jersey Electricity plc is today publishing an Interim Management Statement as required by the UK Listing Authority's Disclosure and Transparency rules, relating to the period from 1 October 2013 to the date of issue of this announcement.
In the thirteen week period, since the beginning of the financial year to the end of December 2013, unit sales of electricity fell by 4%, from 177 million to 170 million kWh, compared to the same period in the prior year. This fall was primarily due to unseasonably higher temperatures in December. This weather effect more than offset the underlying growth attributed to a larger year-on-year customer base. Revenues in our Energy Division however rose by 5% due to an average tariff rise of 9% on 1 January 2013, offset by the lower unit sales. In the period from 1 January 2014 to the date of issue of this statement, electricity unit sales were marginally below those experienced last year.
Our new £70 million interconnector project, Normandie 3 to install a new submarine cable between Jersey and France, is currently on plan and budget. Until we commission it in 2015, we will continue to generate more electricity on-Island than usual due to the reduced importation capacity resulting from the permanent loss of our original interconnector to France, in June 2012. The operating regime in the last quarter reflected these circumstances - we imported 78% of our electricity from France (2012: 71%), generated 17% of our requirements in Jersey (2012: 25%) and purchased 5% from the local Energy from Waste plant (2012: 4%).
Our power purchase, foreign exchange and oil requirements are materially hedged for the remainder of this financial year. In addition, a substantial proportion of the forward imported power and foreign exchange requirements for 2014-2016 have been hedged.
The combined revenues from our other business units were similar to the corresponding period in the last financial year.
Net debt at the end of December 2013 was £5.5m being marginally higher than the level at the last financial year end. The timing of capital expenditure is subject to change but a high proportion of the outflows on the Normandie 3 project are expected in the remainder of this financial year. Our balance sheet remains strong, and there have been no significant changes in the overall financial position of Jersey Electricity plc since we issued our Preliminary Announcement on 18 December 2013 for the year ended 30 September 2013.
The principal risks and uncertainties identified in our last Annual Report, which has just been issued in advance of our AGM on 6 March 2014, have not materially altered in the interim period.
24 January 2014
For further information, please contact:
Chris Ambler, Chief Executive Tel: 01534 505320
Martin Magee, Finance Director Tel: 01534 505201