Spain's Iberdrola to speed up investment programme

[MADRID] Spain's Iberdrola said on Tuesday it will speed up its investment plans, the majority of which will be spent on its networks and renewables businesses, as part of its four-year strategy to 2022.

The leading global wind producer said total spending in the period will amount to 34 billion euros (S$52.12 billion), higher than the 32 billion euros it expected to spend.

Of the total figure, 47 percent will be poured in to the regulated network business and 40 percent into green assets.

In its home market, where the outgoing Socialist government recently disclosed its draft proposal to decarbonise the economy, Iberdrola will spend 8 billion euros in the period, earmarking 4.2 billion euros for renewable assets.

Iberdrola - which supplies energy to more than 30 million people in countries including Spain, the United States and Britain - kept the dividend floor for 2022 at 0.40 euros per share.

The Spanish utility, which last week pledged to bring growth targets forward one year, expects core profit to come in above 12 billion euros in 2022 compared with a previous range of 11.5-12.0 billion.

It slightly improved its outlook for net profit to a projected range of 3.7-3.9 billion euros at the end of the period compared with 3.5-3.7 billion euro previously.

Iberdrola's management will provide more details to the market in an analyst call at 0830 GMT.

REUTERS