ScottishPower's supply arm posts £545m profit as energy crisis costs clawed back

22 February 2024 , 15:32

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ScottishPower said last year's storms hit production from onshore wind farms, but offshore production held up well (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)

ScottishPower's supply arm saw a huge increase in profits in 2023.

The company reported that its operating profit reached £545 million in 2023, a massive jump from a loss of £273 million the previous year. This turnaround happened in the first half of the year when Ofgem allowed suppliers to recover some of the extra costs they faced during the energy crisis. Other companies also saw their profits skyrocket for the same reason.

However, in the second half of the year, ScottishPower's energy supply unit suffered a multimillion-pound loss. The number of customers served by the supplier has fallen from 4.6 million in September to 4.5 million today, according to ScottishPower. In 2023, customers used 14% less electricity and 13% less gas than the previous year.

ScottishPower is also a big player in wind power production. Like its competitors, its onshore wind farms were affected by storms, reducing production by around 18%. However, this was balanced out by a 13% increase in production from the company's offshore turbines.

The company's renewables branch saw a 35% rise in operating profit to £633 million. Meanwhile, its networks branch, which manages parts of the electricity grid, saw a 20% increase to £709 million.

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ScottishPower's chief executive, Keith Anderson, said: "In the last 15 years ScottishPower has invested £30 billion in the UK's green infrastructure: the modern electricity grids and clean power generation that will ensure our economy benefits from secure, homegrown energy."

"We want to go faster, and that's why we're increasing our spending ambitions on green grids and green energy to a record £12 billion in the next five years. As a big investor in green energy in the UK, the most important signal for us is the need for speed and a clear commitment to delivering this critical infrastructure quickly to help drive wider economic growth."

He added: "To unlock this growth, we have to be serious about getting spades in the ground more quickly. That means acting on the ambitions to cut the time it takes to build new power lines, it means incentivising innovation in projects like subsea interconnectors, and it means being bold and grabbing the economic opportunity offered by offshore wind."

"Speeding up the planning system isn't just about making these projects happen more quickly. The knock-on benefits to the wider UK economy are huge, and there to be seized boosting the UK supply chain and stimulating sector-wide growth for businesses and communities across the country."

Lawrence Matheson