IEC reported a loss in the second quarter of 2021 of f NIS 33 million

The IEC reported a loss in the second quarter of 2021. This, when in the background there was an increase in demand for electricity compared to the same period last year. According to the company, the second quarter of the year is usually characterized by low profitability or loss due to "seasonal effects". That is, in the second quarter, which occurs in the spring months, power consumption is generally low due to the mild weather.
The company reported a loss of NIS 33 million in the second quarter, compared to a loss of NIS 474 million in the second quarter of 2020. In the first half of 2021, the company earned NIS 52 million, compared to a profit of NIS 714 million in the first half of 2020. Profit in the first half of 2020 was recorded mainly Due to a payment of NIS 740 million from the East Jerusalem Electric Company for past debts.
In the second quarter of 2021, there was an increase of about 5% in electricity consumption compared to the corresponding quarter last year, in the amount of about NIS 234 million. According to the company, the increase is mainly due to the effects of the corona plague and closures in the second quarter of 2020.
In the first half of the year, there was a 30% increase in the purchase of electricity from private producers - which reached NIS 3.3 billion, compared with NIS 2.5 billion in the corresponding period in 2020. The increase in electricity purchases from private producers is mainly due to electricity purchases from the Ramat Hovav power plant, which was sold at the end of 2020 — as part of the IEC reform — to Shikun VeBinui, Edelcom and Adeltech. In addition, there was an increase in the amount of electricity purchased from producers' entry into renewable energies.
The company's revenues in the first half of 2021 reached NIS 10 billion, compared with revenues of NIS 11.1 billion in the corresponding period last year. According to the company, the decrease is due, among other things, to the one-time payment it received last year from the East Jerusalem Electric Company; A decrease of about 3% in the electricity tariff at the beginning of the year; And a cumulative decline of 2% in consumption in the first half, although in the second quarter there was an increase compared to last year.
The company also reported that as part of the reform, between 2018 and 2020, approximately 1,010 employees retired early, and in the first half of 2021, 91 additional employees retired.
The cost of fuel consumption in the first half of 2021 was about NIS 2.2 billion, compared to NIS 2.9 billion in the corresponding period last year - a decrease of about 23%. The decrease is due to a decrease in the volume of electricity production and fuel prices. A significant factor was the decline in natural gas prices, following the amendment of the transformer and whale gas purchase agreements, but this was partially offset by an increase in coal prices.
The company also reported that in the first half of 2021 it invested NIS 1.4 billion in upgrading the electricity grid.
Ofer Bloch, CEO of the Electric Company, said in a statement with the publication of the reports that "the reports reflect the effects of full implementation of the structural reform in the Electric Company, along with moves that the company's management has led to reducing the price of gas." "The company continues a trend of unprecedented investment in the development of the transmission network, so that it will support the renewable energy revolution and reduce the use of polluting fuels, as part of the implementation of the policy of the Minister of Energy, Karin Elharar."