The UK division of the French energy giant EDF returned to profitability in 2022, with an underlying profit before one-time items of £1.12 billion, a significant improvement from the previous year’s loss of £21 million. Despite this success, their UK energy supply division lost more than £200 million due to the fact that the cost of purchasing energy for residential customers exceeded the energy price cap.
EDF, which supplies gas and electricity to five million households in the United Kingdom and is owned by the French government to the tune of 84%, invested over £2.6 billion in its UK nuclear, renewables, and customer businesses in 2022. This was part of their plan to invest an additional £13bn in the United Kingdom over the next three years, with the majority of the funds earmarked for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset, which is scheduled to open in 2027. In addition, they will invest $2 billion in their existing UK nuclear fleet and renewable energy projects.
Due to “the decline in nuclear output” and “the impact of the exceptional regulatory measures to limit price increases for consumers in 2022,” the EDF Group incurred a €4.99bn (£4.44bn) loss in 2022 despite its investments. This refers to the French government’s price cap on consumer prices, which resulted in EDF selling their electricity for less than they paid for it, resulting in an annual loss of €8.2 billion (£7.3 billion).
Despite these losses, EDF’s UK arm returned to profitability in 2022 as a result of being able to sell their generated electricity at a higher price and continuing to invest in their nuclear, renewable, and customer businesses.
The United Kingdom division of the French energy giant EDF has returned to profitability in 2022, following a year of losses in 2021. The company’s underlying profit prior to non-recurring items was $1.12 billion. This was a result of EDF’s ability to sell the electricity they produced for a higher price than they paid for it. The company invested over £2.6 billion in their UK nuclear, renewables, and customer businesses in 2022, and has plans to invest an additional £13 billion over the next three years. Despite their investments and successes, the EDF Group posted a loss of €4,99bn in 2022 due to “the decline in nuclear output” and “the impact of the exceptional regulatory measures to limit price increases for consumers in 2022.” The latter refers to a price cap imposed by the French government on consumer prices, which cost them €8.2bn annually. Despite this, EDF’s UK subsidiary can still be considered successful after it returned to profitability in 2022 following a year of losses.
