SSE's profits top £1.3bn as its market share grows

Scottish & Southern Energy yesterday reported a 12th annual rise in adjusted profits to more than £1.3 billion and said it continued to take market share.

The Perth-based utility warned that the economic outlook remained "uncertain" but it still expected to add substantially to its customer numbers across the UK and Ireland. The company grew its customer base by 300,000 to 9.65 million in the last year.

SSE said it would increase capital investment in 2012 by 18 per cent, from 1.44 billion in 2011 to 1.7bn - the top end of its planned range for annual spending to March 2015.

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The company said it plans to spend this money on electricity transmission upgrades as well as to develop new assets including wind farms. Half of its 2010 capital spend went on renewable power generation. It also said it would buy a wind farm in North Lincolnshire, which is expected to have an installed capacity of at least 68 megwatts.

Shares in the group - Scotland's second-largest listed company - closed up 14p at 1,341p in a slightly lower overall market.

Investec analyst Angelos Anastasiou said the 1.7 cent increase in annual profits was "not particularly impressive," especially given increased levels of spending.

"Following the recent good run we would be tempted to take profits at these levels," he said.

The company announced a total dividend of 75p for 2011, an increase of 7.1 per cent on the previous year's pay-out.

In line with rival Centrica, the company hinted that domestic customers were facing the possibility of further hikes in bills, though chief executive Ian Marchant told The Scotsman there were no immediate plans to raise prices.

"We have no plans but wholesale gas prices are up for the coming winter and you can only buck the market for so long," he said.