SSE Q1 trading 'slightly' exceeds expectations, FY guidance reaffirmed

Energy provider SSE said on Thursday that its first-quarter trading performance had "slightly exceeded" internal expectations, leading the group to reaffirm its full-year guidance for adjusted earnings per share of at least 120.0p.

SSE stated progress had been made across various capex projects "at pace", with the first power from its Seagreen offshore wind farm asset expected by the end of July and construction on its Viking onshore wind farm and Dogger Bank A, B & C offshore wind farms said to be "progressing well".

In terms of production, SSE said output of electricity from renewable sources in which it has an ownership interest across the UK and Ireland was 93-gigawatt hours, or around 5% ahead of plan in the quarter ended 30 June, principally due to weather conditions.

The FTSE 100-listed firm added that flexible thermal generation continued to play "a key part" in the UK and Irish energy markets' transition to net zero and said output of electricity from its gas-fired generation plant was slightly ahead of the same period a year earlier at 3,809-gigawatt hours, reflecting market conditions and individual plant availability.

SSE also said progress continued to be made on the disposal of its 25% minority stake in SSEN Transmission, with a formal process now underway as it targets an agreed sale by the end of the calendar year.

Finance director Gregor Alexander said: "We remain confident in our financial outlook for strong earnings growth this year and look forward to updating the market on performance in our interim results statement on 16 November 2022."

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com