SSE’s chief executive has told Utility Week the company is “moving forward” with a full or partial sale of its 33.3 per cent stake in gas distribution network SGN.
Alistair Phillips-Davies said this was likely to become a focus in the first quarter of 2021, following publication of Ofgem’s final determinations for gas networks.
SSE announced in June that it was considering sales of stakes in its networks businesses as part of a £2 billion disposal strategy.
Since then the company has appointed banks to “review options for the sale of all or part of SSE’s holding” in SGN. It sold a 16.7 per cent equity stake in the company in 2016.
Announcing its half-year results this morning, SSE said it has so far delivered £1.4 billion of the disposal programme.
Phillips-Davies told Utility Week: “On SGN, we have appointed banks so we will clearly be moving forward, or looking to move forward, with a partial or full disposal of our SGN stake over the coming months. We’ll particularly start looking at that in Q1 after we have seen the final determination.”
The company also flagged that in future it may consider selling off stakes in its SSEN transmission and distribution businesses.
It said this “partnership approach” had proved successful in its renewables arm, where it expects to announce “within the next couple of weeks” the sale of a 10 per cent stake in the Dogger Bank windfarm off the north east coast of England. Phillips-Davies said he expected financial close on the 3.6GW project to be reached in the coming days, allowing development to start.
Releasing its results for the six months to 30 September on the day of the prime minister’s 10-point decarbonisation plan, SSE also highlighted its ambition to add 1GW a year of new renewables capacity by the second half of the decade.
Phillips-Davies welcomed Boris Johnson’s vision and reiterated his call that Ofgem takes note of the ambition in the price controls for networks.
He added: “It’s important that either Ofgem clearly acknowledges net zero in the substance of its final determinations or government puts it down in writing.”
SSE reported adjusted operating profit for the period down 15 per cent to £418.3 million with adjusted profit before tax down 26 per cent to £193.9 million.
The company estimates the coronavirus impact on operating profit in the first half at £115 million.