MVV Energie reports satisfactory financial year

MVV Energie, the Mannheim-based energy company listed in the SDAX (ISIN: DE000A0H52F5, WKN: A0H52F), successfully asserted itself in a difficult competitive climate in the past 2009/10 financial year (1.10.2009 - 30.9.2010). As announced in Mannheim on Friday following a meeting of the Supervisory Board, the company managed to boost its external sales by 6 percent to Euro 3.4 billion. At Euro 239 million, its adjusted operating earnings (adjusted EBIT) matched the previous year's figure. Due to a higher volume of expenses not deductible for tax purposes, its adjusted annual net surplus after minority interests dropped slightly by 3 percent to Euro 95 million.

Dr. Georg Müller, CEO of MVV Energie, is suitably pleased with these annual results. "We matched our previous year's earnings once again, thus meeting the forecast we issued at the beginning of the year in spite of the difficult market climate." Particularly positive developments were reported for the company's nationwide electricity sales to secondary distributors and industrial and commercial customers. MVV Energie thus managed to increase its electricity turnover in the past year by a total of 23 percent to 23 billion kilowatt hours. Comments Dr. Müller: "We have further improved the balance between the volume of earnings contributions from our most important business segments, namely electricity, district heating, gas and environmental energy. This makes our Group less dependent on macroeconomic developments, also in terms of the way ahead, than many of our competitors." The CEO could also point to a substantial rise in the company's free cash flow which, thanks to successful working capital management improved from Euro 20 million in the previous year to Euro 154 million. The company will be presenting its complete consolidated financial statements at its Annual Results Press Conference in Frankfurt on 12 January 2011.

At its meeting, the Supervisory Board of MVV Energie AG adopted all resolutions necessary for the Annual General Meeting to be held in Rosengarten Congress Center in Mannheim on 18 March 2011. Given the company's satisfactory annual results, the dividend for the past 2009/10 financial year is to remain constant at Euro 0.90 per share. The Supervisory Board thus endorsed a corresponding proposal submitted by the Executive Board.

The Supervisory Board has proposed the following individuals as candidates for the forthcoming elections of new Supervisory Board members at the Annual General Meeting: Dr. Stefan Fulst-Blei, Reinhold Götz, Prof. Dr. Egon Jüttner, Wolfgang Raufelder and Carsten Südmersen (as representatives of the City of Mannheim shareholder), Dr. Dieter Steinkamp, CEO of RheinEnergie AG (as representative of the RheinEnergie AG shareholder) and Dr. Lorenz Näger, member of the Executive Board of HeidelbergCement AG, and Heinz-Werner Ufer (as representatives of independent shareholders). The Lord High Mayor of the City of Mannheim, Dr. Peter Kurz, and the First Mayor of the City of Mannheim, Christian Specht, are members of the Supervisory Board in line with a corresponding requirement in the company's Articles of Incorporation.

The Supervisory Board also approved the implementation of "Once Together". This group project is intended to prepare the Group for the growing challenges in the energy market in the coming years as well. By working together to enhance efficiency, cut costs and extend their understanding of cooperation, the companies within the Group aim to create a basis for their strategic alignment, with investments in renewable energies, environmentally-friendly district heating, the energy-related services and environmental energy business fields and expanding the nationwide sales business. Joint efficiency enhancements should facilitate an increasing volume of material and personnel cost savings each year over the next three years. By the 2012/13 financial year, annual savings volumes on a scale of Euro 20 million to Euro 30 million should have been achieved compared with 2009/10. To this end, around 450 positions are to be cut in a socially responsible manner across the entire Group by 2020, of which 250 at MVV Energie, 155 at Stadtwerke Kiel and 50 at Energieversorgung Offenbach. This measure will lead to a provision requirement of around Euro 31 million in the current 2010/11 financial year. These restructuring expenses have no impact on the Group's adjusted EBIT.