(Alliance News) - Prysmian Spa reported Thursday that it ended 2023 with net income up 5.0% year-on-year to EUR529 million from EUR504 million in 2022.

Revenues fell slightly, by 1.1 percent to EUR15.35 billion from EUR16.07 billion. The Projects business posted double-digit organic growth of 15 percent due to on-time execution of interconnection and offshore wind farm projects and better margin projects. Revenues from the Energy business continue to benefit from the growth drivers of the energy transition: the expansion and strengthening of power grids, renewable energy generation, and the development of electric mobility and clouding.

Overall, the Energy business declined 1.3 percent, with positive organic growth of 1.7 percent in the Industrial & Network Components business. Volumes in the Telecom business declined sharply in the second half of the year, mainly due to the downturn in the U.S. market.

Adjusted Ebitda rose 9.4%, to EUR1.63 billion from EUR1.49 billion while the reported figure showed an increase to EUR1.49 billion from EUR1.39 billion, with expenses rising to EUR143 million from EUR101 million a year earlier.

Free cash flow increased 30 percent to EUR724 million from EUR559 million, above guidance of EUR550-650 million, while net debt fell significantly to EUR1.19 billion from EUR1.42 billion as of Dec. 31, 2022.

In 2023, Prysmian acquired more than EUR13 billion of new projects, bringing the total order backlog to around EUR20 billion -- backlog and contracts with solid commitments -- further increasing visibility on future results. In February 2024, the group received Notice to Proceed for the Amprion framework agreement and the EGL2 project, projects awarded in 2023, bringing the total backlog to about EUR18 billion.

Following the 2023 accounts, the board decided to raise the dividend to EUR0.70 from EUR0.60 paid last year and plans to increase the coupon by 10 percent annually between 2023 and 2027.

By 2024, Prysmian expects to post adjusted Ebitda of EUR1.58 billion to EUR1.68 billion, cash flow of EUR675-775 million, and reduce issuance.

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

Comments and questions to redazione@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2024 Alliance News IS Italian Service Ltd. All rights reserved.