REN achieves a net profit of €13.5M in the first quarter

•EBITDA reached €123.7M

•Production of renewable energy covered 51% of the consumption

•New instantaneous record of 4532 MW in the production of wind energy

•Quality of service in electricity transmission and natural gas transportation remains among the best in the world

In the first three months of 2017, REN recorded a €7.4M increase in the Net Profit to €13.5M. This reflects an improvement in operational profits and in the company's financial performance over the period.

EBITDA reached €123.7M, which represents an increase of 2.1% compared to the same period of last year. The Net Profit grew to €13.5M in the first three months of the year, compared to the corresponding period, boosted by Operational Profits and by solid financial performance, which increased by 33.9% compared to the first quarter of 2016. Particularly noteworthy was the decrease in the Average Cost of Debt from 3.7% to 2.6%. The Recurring Net Profit rose from €32M to €39.3M, while Net Debt increased by 2.8%, owing largely to the purchase of shares in Electrogas. In this first quarter, CAPEX achieved €13.2M, while average RAB brought in €3,495.3M.

In the first three months of the year, REN showed stable financial and operational performance, in line with expectations. Of particular note were the increase in the Net Profit and the decrease in the Average Cost of Debt. Said operational and financial performance continues to be affected by the negative impact of the Energy Sector Extraordinary Contribution (CESE), which in this period amounted to €25.8M (€25.9M in 2016).

On 7 February, REN concluded its purchase of a 42.5% stake in the capital stock of Electrogas. This acquisition was an important step for REN towards internationalisation, in line with its 2015-2018 Strategic Plan.

On 7 April, REN announced the agreement for the purchase of 100% of the capital of EDP Gás from the EDP Group, for the value of €532.4M. This acquisition will be financed using credit lines and a €250M capital increase. REN's decision to take this opportunity is in line with its financial discipline criteria; it will ensure not only that profitability is sustainable but also that stable credit metrics are maintained, in accordance with current Investment Grade ratings. Following the transaction, financial rating agencies Moody's and Fitch confirmed REN's investment grade rating, with Baa3 and BBB respectively, reinforcing its position as the company with the highest rating in Portugal from the three major rating agencies.

At the General Shareholders' Meeting, that took place this morning, was approved a payment of a dividend of 17.1 cents per share for 2016.

In the first three months of 2017, renewable production supplied around half of national electricity consumption. Hydropower represented 19%, as dam inflows remained below average, and wind power represented 26%. Non-renewable energies supplied the remaining 49% of national consumption: coal represented 22% and natural gas 27%.

A 0.2% change in electricity consumption has already been recorded in comparison to the corresponding period of the previous year. This value takes into account temperature correction and working days.

The balance of trade with Spain continued to be positive; in March it was equivalent to 7% of national consumption and in the first quarter of the year it was equivalent to 9% of national consumption.

Also in the first three months of the year, REN registered an instantaneous record of 4532 MW in the production of wind energy on 2 January. This broke the previous record of 4453 MW, registered on 21 November of last year. This new record follows the achievement in 2016 of a new 5-year record in natural gas and electricity consumption in Portugal. On the same day, daily wind energy production also topped the previous record, reaching 96.7 GWh, 0.8 GWh more than the previous best, registered on 30 January 2015.