BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 7. Snam has reported a sharp increase in its net financial expenses for the first nine months of 2024, reaching 230 million euros, up 75 million euros (48.4%) from the same period last year, Trend reports.
This rise was primarily attributed to an increase in net financial debt and a higher average cost of debt, which climbed to approximately 2.5% from 1.9% in 2023, the producer explained.
The increase in financial expenses reflects the challenging interest rate environment, although Snam was able to partially offset this through positive income from active cash management. The impact was further mitigated by higher capitalized financial expenses and increased proceeds from the time value effect on Superbonus credits and other minor bonuses.
Net income from equity investments saw a modest decline of 6.0%, totaling 233 million euros. Contributions from Italian associates remained stable compared to the first nine months of 2023. However, international associates faced challenges, with lower results primarily driven by a return to normalized levels for auction premiums from Bulgaria and the Revithoussa LNG terminal. The Greek company DESFA and Austria’s GCA were particularly impacted by these factors, along with a lack of one-off regulatory accrual releases.
Despite these setbacks, the decline in equity investment income was partially offset by a higher contribution from EMG, which saw positive income from prior financial years, as well as an improved performance from Austria’s TAG, which benefited from more profitable short-term bookings.