France's EDF returns to profit in 2023, books charge for UK ops

By Benjamin Mallet and Forrest Crellin

PARIS (Reuters) -French state-owned power giant EDF said on Friday it returned to profit and cut its debt by about 10 billion euros ($10.76 billion) in 2023, buoyed by historically high electricity prices and the return of some of its nuclear fleet.

The results mark a dramatic turnaround for the debt-laden company, which was nationalised last June, even as it struggles with spiralling costs and long delays to its UK nuclear power projects and falling power prices at home.

Still, the group booked a 7.9 billion euro impairment charge after tax related to its UK operations, including the long-delayed Hinkley Point reactor, Britain's first new nuclear plant in more than two decades.

France wants the British government to contribute more money to the two new nuclear plants.

Management also warned that operating profit this year would fall and that it is struggling to find buyers for its long-term electricity contracts due to weaker power prices.

"We are in discussions with the British government and other investors to arrange financing for the Sizewell C project," EDF CEO Luc Remont said on a media call, referring to another new plant in southeast England.

EDF recorded a 2023 net profit of 10 billion euros, compared to a loss of 17.9 billion in 2022, and EBITDA of 39.9 billion euros, up from a loss of 4.9 billion. Net debt at the end of 2023 was 54.4 billion euros.

French electricity prices skyrocketed in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and EDF took several reactors offline to carry out checks and repairs after signs of stress corrosion were discovered at some.

The last reactor at risk of corrosion is expected to be repaired during its once every 10 years' maintenance starting this month, it said.

Prices have since been on the decline, and forward prices are close to EDF's operational costs.

Its French nuclear production rose by some 41.4 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2023 to 320.4 TWh as France faced historically high electricity market prices.

The group, which runs Europe's largest nuclear fleet, said it expects nuclear output to rise again in 2024.

($1 = 0.9292 euros)

(Reporting by Forrest Crellin and Benjamin Mallet; Editing by Josephine Mason, Susan Fenton and Jan Harvey)