Tuesday November 13, 03:17 PM
German power giant EON posts 22 percent rise in nine-month profit
BERLIN (AFP) - EON (Xetra: 761440 - news) , the biggest German electricity and gaz company, said Tuesday that net profit climbed by 22 percent in the first nine months of 2007 and pledged to double investments in renewable energy sources.
The fresh profits could reignite controversy over rising energy prices in the biggest eurozone economy.
EON net profit reached 4.2 billion euros (6.1 billion dollars), while operating profit gained 12 percent to 7.1 billion, beating market expectations, a company statement said.
EON said it would double investments in renewable energies to 6.0 billion euros, though it was unsure that such a move would calm critics in Germany and Brussels who maintain that the German energy market should be opened further to competition.
EON nine-month sales were 7.0 percent higher at 49.4 billion euros, and the group confimed its full-year targets of an increase of between 5.0-10 percent in both operating and net profit.
Shares in the energy company slipped by 0.10 percent to 134.96 euros in midday trades on the Frankfurt stock exchange, which was 0.44 percent lower overall.
EON and its main German rival RWE (Xetra: 703712 - news) have been singled out by German public opinion and the European Commission for repeated price increases in a market that was liberalised 10 years ago.
European Union officials now want to force big power companies to split up production and distribution activities to open the way to greater competition.
The German government has backed power companies in their struggle with EU authorities, but has warned that could change if the four biggest groups do not improve the transparency of their operations.
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