--Naturgy swung to a loss following a large writedown

--Operating results were significantly hit by the effects of Covid-19 on demand

--The energy company's board will propose a final dividend of EUR0.63 a share for 2020

By Giulia Petroni and Pietro Lombardi

Naturgy Energy Group SA said Thursday that it swung to a loss in 2020, as its operating performance took a significant hit from the effects of Covid-19 on energy demand and foreign currencies.

The Spanish energy company booked a net loss of 347 million euros ($417.6 million) for the year, compared with a profit of EUR1.40 billion in 2019. The result was affected by an asset valuation review that Naturgy completed in the fourth quarter and which resulted in a writedown of EUR1.09 billion.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came in at EUR3.45 billion, down 19% on the year.

Naturgy said its results were hit by lower gas-and-power demand in Spain and Latin America, a challenging global scenario for liquefied natural gas and currency effects in some Latin American regions.

Net sales fell 26% on year to EUR15.35 billion.

The company said it will propose a final dividend of EUR0.63 a share for 2020 to be paid in the first quarter of this year. If approved, the payment would bring the total dividend for 2020 to EUR1.44 a share.

Write to Giulia Petroni at giulia.petroni@wsj.com and Pietro Lombardi at pietro.lombardi@wsj.com; @pietrolombard10

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

02-04-21 0429ET