Faced with a particularly mild winter and a decline in exports, Hydro-Québec posted a net profit down by $655 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2024, compared to the same period last year.
Its net profit thus increased from 2.23 billion for the first quarter of the 2023 financial year to 1.58 billion in the same quarter in 2024.
The state company explains these results firstly by a decrease in exports, caused by a marked drop in water supplies to its large reservoirs. It therefore limited its sales on the short-term markets to exercise prudence in managing its inventories, explained Maxime Aucoin, executive vice-president of strategies and finance, on Friday.
Sales outside Quebec thus fell from 1.24 billion dollars in the first quarter of last year to 446 million in the first quarter of 2024, a decrease of 793 million.
In addition, we experienced a winter with higher than normal temperatures, which led to a reduction in the volume of electricity sales in Quebec. The latter still recorded an increase of $168 million, due to the increase in prices.
Hydro-Québec notes that there was still growth in electricity demand, but that this was moderated by the milder temperatures.
“Focus on your mission”
During a press conference, Mr. Aucoin also indicated that Hydro-Québec was exercising its option to sell its minority stake in Dana TM4, an electric motor company.
Hydro thus wants to “focus on its mission”.
“Our 2035 action plan is very ambitious and to achieve it, we must focus on our core business and the investments of around $150 to $180 billion that are required,” said Mr. Aucoin.
He specified that Hydro-Québec had invested $200 million in it, since the 2018 transaction at a price of $165 million.
“It is in this context and at a time when the Dana TM4 company is expanding while posting solid financial results that Hydro-Québec has decided to exercise its option to sell Dana its remaining stake of 45 %,” explained the state-owned company in a press release.
“It’s a beautiful story, the story of Dana TM4. This is a technology that we developed here. » The company, initially loss-making, is “now profitable” and is even experiencing “strong growth”, noted Maxime Aucoin. “That’s why we think the moment is right. »
He clarified that the price had not yet been fixed and that “we should know the final price towards the end of the year”.