FRANKFURT, Nov 3 — Soon-to-be-nationalised gas importer Uniper unveiled a record €40 billion (RM186 billion) net loss, among the biggest in German corporate history, reflecting expected future losses in the wake of Russia’s move to stop supplies.
“Our half-year numbers already indicated that this has left massive scars in our financial results,” Chief Financial Officer Tiina Tuomela said, adding an agreed stabilisation package that will see Germany take over Uniper was currently being finalised.
Uniper said the net loss factored in €10 billion of realised losses the company incurred by replacing Russian gas volumes on the spot market at much higher prices as well as €31 billion of future losses related to this problem.
“We are also working intensively to restructure our gas portfolio in order to minimise risks and to end by 2024 the losses resulting from suspended Russian gas deliveries,” Tuomela said.
Among the group’s top priorities remains the planned exit from the Russian market, where it owns an 83.7 per cent stake in Unipro, it said.
Shares in Uniper were down 2.2 per cent in pre-market trade.
Berlin in September agreed to nationalise Uniper and take over 99 per cent of Germany’s largest gas importer to make sure the company can keep buying gas and supplying the country’s industry and avoid a Lehman Brothers-style domino effect in the energy sector.
Under the agreement, Uniper has received €18 billion worth of credit lines from state lender KfW, €14 billion of which have been drawn down as of the end of October, it said. — Reuters
