Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Corre Energy reports half-year profits of €2m

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The company said this was primarily due to the positive impact of finance expenses and a tax credit.

This financial expense of €5.8m was related to the revaluation of share options embedded in the Italian Energy Efficiency Fund financing agreement.

Last year, the company reported a further €10m of funding through a subscription agreement, loan arrangement and a drawdown from the fund, which is managed by FIEE, an Italian alternative investment fund manager.

FIEE made a long term equity-linked investment into Corre Energy in 2021.

Corre added that the operating loss excluding these changes would be €5.9m, a slight improvement on the €6.5m operating loss recorded in the same period in 2023.

The company also pointed to the results of its operational review, which was announced last month and was focused on reducing operating costs.

It reported that there are plans to reduce operational expenditure, while it is focusing spending on its existing German projects. It is planning a consultation process which may lead to redundancies.

Corre also recently announced a joint venture with Semper Power to develop a battery project at the company’s Zuidwendig site in the Netherlands.

Existing compressed air energy storage projects at the site have been delayed due to permitting delays.

At the end of August, Corre Energy announced that it had secured a loan from a group of its existing shareholders.

These shareholders are long-term investors in the business and represent 33pc of the company’s share capital, Corre reported at the time.

Corre said the loan would provide “immediate funding” to the business for ongoing operating expenses, working capital and capital expenditures in its existing projects. It added that the loan is available to be drawn down for one year, while the company can draw down €450,000 upon signing.

In March, Corre also announced that it had received “multiple indications of interest: industrial, strategic and institutional” to invest in the business. A month later, it appointed Rothschild & Co as financial advisor to the company while it assesses options.

It said at the time that discussions with each interested party remained at an early stage and did not confirm whether interest is for some or all of the business

The group reported today that the process remains ongoing but its focus was on existing financial issues, which has had an impact on the investment.

Corre now said that a transaction may not be completed until 2025 due to the Christmas break.

“As part of our proactive strategy to streamline operations, we have implemented targeted cost reductions, including a right-sized team,” chief executive Keith McGrane said.

“While there have been delays in some projects, we are in ongoing discussions with key stakeholders and remain confident of positive resolutions,” he added. “Our focus continues to be on ensuring that we invest in the right projects at the right time, with significant interest from strategic investors, particularly around the Rothschild-led investment project.”

Corre Energy’s main business is the development, construction and commercialisation of long duration energy storage projects which are linked to greater use of renewables.

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