Uniper has not received any gas from Russia for months. This is now clearly visible in the figures of the largest German gas importer.
At the largest German gas importer Uniper, losses are increasing due to the rise in gas prices. A clearly negative result is expected for the third quarter, Uniper surprisingly announced in Düsseldorf.
The group has had to buy more expensive gas on the market for months because of the Russian delivery restrictions in order to be able to continue to meet its contractual obligations. The losses also affect Uniper’s balance sheet equity. The company therefore announced the loss of more than half of the share capital. In terms of stock corporation law, this entails the obligation to convene an extraordinary general meeting (AGM). This should take place in the second half of December. Then the management wants to inform the investors about the loss and explain the situation of the company.
Millions every day
According to the 2021 annual report, Uniper’s share capital was EUR 622.1 million. After exhausting all capital and revenue reserves, the further loss was not allowed to exceed EUR 311 million. When asked, a spokesman said it was a formal act that came as no surprise to Uniper in the context of the current situation. “As a result of the lack of gas supplies from Russia, we continue to lose millions of euros every day through replacement procurement costs.”
He referred to the agreement reached with the federal government on a stabilization package. However, this is still subject to regulatory approvals and shareholder approval. That’s why Uniper is planning another general meeting. It is quite possible that both general meetings will fall on the same date and then possibly be combined into one general meeting, said the spokesman.
The federal government, Uniper and its previous majority shareholder Fortum had agreed a month ago on the extensive nationalization of Uniper. Among other things, a capital increase and the acquisition of the Uniper shares from Fortum are planned. The federal government should then own around 98.5 percent of the shares in Uniper.
Central role for natural gas supply
The Düsseldorf SDax group is in trouble because Russia is no longer pumping gas to Germany. The gas wholesaler is a supplier to over 100 municipal utilities and large companies and thus plays a central role in Germany’s natural gas supply. The company now has to buy the missing gas from Russia at a higher price on the gas market. Uniper recently spoke of daily losses of more than 100 million euros.
By the end of the first half of the year, Uniper’s losses had already totaled 12 billion euros. More than half of this, 6.5 billion euros, was related to expected future gas supply disruptions. Other burdens included depreciation, such as that for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Since then, however, the situation has worsened: Russia no longer supplies any gas to Germany and the gas price had temporarily risen to record levels.
Uniper’s third quarter is likely to be correspondingly negative and management is also forecasting losses for the coming months. At the end of the third quarter, the Group’s equity is therefore burdened with a non-operating valuation effect in the double-digit billion range.
For the first nine months, Uniper expects an adjusted operating loss before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 4.8 billion euros. In the previous year, Uniper had still made a profit of 614 million euros. According to preliminary figures, the adjusted net result amounts to minus 3.2 billion euros, after plus 487 million euros in the previous year. As planned, Uniper intends to present the final figures for the third quarter on November 3rd.
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Source: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
