Madrid (awp/afp) – The Spanish energy giant Iberdrola posted a net profit of 40% in the first quarter, thanks to solid results in Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, where the group wants to accelerate its implementation.

Iberdrola obtained 1,480 million euros (1,460 million Swiss francs) in profit between January and March, compared to 1,060 million in the first quarter of 2022. This figure exceeds the forecasts of analysts surveyed by Factset, who expected on average more than 1,310 million profit.

The Spanish group, which in just a few years has become one of the world leaders in renewable energy, has also seen its turnover grow strongly (+27% in one year), up to 15,460 million euros, according to a press release. released this Wednesday.

This dynamic is explained “mainly” by the good results “in Spain and the United Kingdom”, where Iberdrola manages a wide network of wind farms, but also in the United States, where the Spanish group has strengthened its production capacity.

Elle devrait “se poursuivre tout au long au long de l’année”, specify par ailleurs le communicate, qui fait état d’une “amélioration” des conditions “commerciales” dans plusieurs pays, avec notamment de nouveaux tarifs aux Etats-Unis et in Brazil.

These figures come when Iberdrola reached an agreement at the beginning of April for the sale to the Mexican State of 13 power plants that it owned in the country, or 60% of its Mexican assets, for an amount of six billion dollars.

Following this agreement, which ended a long dispute between Iberdrola and the Mexican government, Iberdrola announced that it would use the money to accelerate its deployment in the United States, where it expects large investments in the coming years.

The first-quarter results also come as Madrid introduced an exceptional tax on the profits of large energy companies at the beginning of January, which should allow the state to recoup two billion euros a year in 2023 and 2024.

This measure, intended to finance the support measures implemented in the face of high inflation, has been criticized by employers, including Ignacio Sánchez Galán, concerned about its repercussions on the investment capacity of the affected groups.

The flagship of Spanish energy, which generated a record profit of 4,340 million euros last year, specifies that it has invested 10,400 million euros in the last year, the vast majority to develop its renewable energy production capacity.

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