Conexus revenue increased by 39% last year
According to the performance data for the year 2023 of the unified natural gas transmission and storage system operator Conexus Baltic Grid (Conexus), its turnover reached EUR 76 million last year, which is 39% more than in the previous year.
At the end of the reporting year, 17.9 TWh of natural gas (including safety reserves of energy supply) were stored in the Inčukalns Underground Gas Storage (UGS), which is 58% more than at the same time last year. When natural gas withdrawal started on the 15th of October 2023, 21.7 TWh of natural gas were stored in the Inčukalns UGS. The season started with the largest volume of natural gas stored in the storage facility in the last five years.
Meanwhile, Latvian users’ natural gas consumption in 2023 amounted to 8.2 TWh, a 7% decrease compared to the previous year. The decrease in natural gas consumption was due to both, the milder weather conditions in the winter months compared to 2022 that resulted in a lower demand for natural gas for heating than in the previous year, and the still relatively high natural gas prices that led users to reduce their natural gas consumption. The total volume of natural gas transmitted in Latvia in 2023 amounted to 29.1 TWh, which is 7% less than in the previous year.
In 2023, Conexus provided uninterrupted natural gas supply to users in Latvia, as well as natural gas transmission and storage services to Lithuania, Estonia and Finland. During the natural gas injection season, approximately 70% of the total gas volume to the common area of Latvia and Estonia were supplied from Lithuania and 30% from Finland.
"Last year, we, as the system operator, continued to ensure stability and continuity of natural gas supply, while continuing our active work on the implementation of the European Projects of Common Interest. At the end of the year, the Enhancement of Latvia-Lithuania Interconnection Project (ELLI), implemented by Conexus and Lithuanian natural gas transmission system operator Amber Grid, was completed, increasing interconnection capacity in both directions. This year, our focus is on continuing work to improve storage infrastructure. The extensive storage modernisation project will be completed by the end of next year, which includes renovation of wells, third gas collection point, as well as installation of additional gas pumping units, thus strengthening the role of the storage as a guarantee of stability and security for both system users and end consumers of natural gas," explains Uldis Bariss, Conexus’ Chairman of the Board.
U. Bariss adds that looking ahead at this year the situation in the natural gas transmission segment will be stable and predictable, while in the storage segment it will largely depend on the overall demand in the Baltic market for the services of the Inčukalns Underground Gas Storage. Storage capacity auctions in the spring will show how many traders will use Inčukalns Underground Gas Storage." says U. Bariss.
The High demand for natural gas storage at Inčukalns storage contributes to the revenue growth of Conexus
In the reporting period, EBITDA increased by 57% in comparison with the results of 2022, thus reaching €50.5 million, while profit was €16.2 million, which is an increase of €4.8 million compared to the previous year. Revenues and EBITDA were positively impacted by the increase in revenues and EBITDA of the storage service, while revenues and EBITDA of the transmission segment remained relatively unchanged.