Enagas profits up 17.6% since January 2017

The after-tax profit stand alone was €437.7 million. This represents a 5% growth compared to 2016, in line with the objectives established for the year. This increase has been motivated, fundamentally, by the contribution of the investee companies, which has been 19.6%.

Investments

Throughout 2017, Enagas invested a total of €328.5 million in assets in which it was already present. Of this figure, approximately €175 million were allocated to the construction of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), a project to which Enagas contributes 16% and which is key to the security of Europe's energy supply.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has recently approved the financing of the project worth €1500 million, an important decision in the financing process of TAP, whose financial closure is expected to be reached in 2018. The start-up of this infrastructure It is scheduled for 2020. Currently, the degree of progress of construction exceeds 65%.

Financial structure

At the end of the year, Enagas' stand-alone net financial debt was €4364 million, with more than 80% of debt at a fixed rate. In addition, the cost of net stand-alone debt was reduced to 2.2% in 2017, compared to 2.4% in 2016.

Financial availability stood at €2484 million, which allows the company to maintain high solvency levels and comfortably face the next maturities, which will not be significant until 2022.

In 2017, net stand-alone debt was reduced by €725 million with respect to the previous year and the leverage ratio has been improved. This has been influenced by the good performance of the national and international business and the assignment of collection rights for the accumulated tariff deficit until 2014, an operation that was carried out successfully thanks to the economic and financial stability of the Gas System.

In its annual review, the credit rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Fitch have reconfirmed the long-term rating of Enagas, located in A-.

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