AGL's green growing pains
AGL Energy’s billion dollar loss provides a stark reminder of the challenges fossil fuel companies will face during the energy transition.
AGL Energy’s $1.3 billion statutory loss provides a stark reminder of the growing pains fossil fuel companies are set to face in coming years during the transition to renewables.
The loss is in part due to a $680 million impairment from bringing forward the closure of its Loy Yang A power station by 10 years. But is also comes against the backdrop of surging energy prices which have underpinned a strong rally in its share price this year. That share price rise has made its largest shareholder Mike Cannon-Brookes hundreds of millions of dollars on paper.
While analysts appeared largely non-plussed at the integrated utility’s full-year earnings briefing, investors marked down the stock, which had fallen by more than 4% to $11.18 by 1:30pm, compared to a 0.1% increase in the ASX 200 index.
Underlying earnings rose $281 million for the year, 4% higher than analysts’ consensus and a slight increase on the prior year. The stronger underlying result allowed the company to declare a final 23 cents per share dividend.
