Integrated Annual Report 2021
As we all know, the so-called Coronavirus Emergency unfolded in Italy in February 2020, with the spread of infection and the necessary emergency measures taken by the Health and Government Authorities to contain the spread.
Although this state of emergency is only expected to be officially declared over on 31 March 2022, the Company has not to date noted any major adverse effects on the development and investment initiatives. By leveraging digitisation processes, measures have been implemented to ensure the continuity and effectiveness of worksite activities and interventions at customer premises, while operating in complete safety and in compliance with the terms set out in the company plans.
With reference to the customer base / sales company and their solvency, it is noted that the rules for user access to the gas distribution service are established by ARERA and are regulated in the Network Code. At present, the Company has not noted and does not anticipate any significant adverse repercussions on receipts expected from gas sales companies such as to jeopardise the financial balance of the Group, or on the regularity of payments by counterparties.
With regard to access to credit, Italgas does not foresee any significant negative impacts, taking the following into account: (i) the Company has cash deposited with major credit institutions for a total of around € 1,391.8 million as of 31 December 2021; (ii) there are limited requirements to refinance debt (in January 2022 a bond was repaid for around € 112 million and the subsequent repayment is due during 2024), (iii) the bonds issued by Italgas as of 31 December 2021, as part of the Euro Medium Term Notes Programme, do not require the observance of covenants relating to the data in the financial statements.
As of 31 December 2021, the only loan agreement providing for financial covenants, which have been complied with, is the EIB loan for € 90 million taken out by Toscana Energia.
The success of the “dual-tranche” bond issue maturing in February 2028 and February 2033, for a total of € 500 million each, implementing the EMTN Programme, as well as confirmation of the rating by Moody’s (Baa2, stable outlook), on 25 November 2021, and Fitch (BBB+, stable outlook), on 6 December 2021, bear witness to the Company’s financial soundness and confirm its ability to access the capital market.
With reference to the impacts, including potential ones, on revenues, costs, investments and cash flows expected as a result of the limitations imposed by the aforementioned health emergency, the Company has not found any evidence to date to suggest significant negative effects on FY 2022.
However, the Company is currently unable to estimate the potential material negative effects on the economic, financial and equity outlook in the periods to come, should the health emergency situation persist or return to a critical state.
In this context, Italgas will therefore continue to pursue its strategic objectives, focusing on digital transformation with the goal of improving service quality, streamlining processes and operating costs, whilst paying constant attention to development opportunities. With specific regard to investments, Italgas expects to continue to carry out its plan targeted primarily at the implementation of projects for network digitisation and repurposing and the methanisation of Sardinia, plus the normal maintenance and development of the networks managed.
As we know, in February 2022 the Russian-Ukrainian military conflict exploded following the invasion by the Russian army into Ukraine sovereign territory. The state of political and military tension generated and the consequent economic sanctions adopted by the international community against Russia have had significant effects and created turbulence on the global markets, on both the financial front and in terms of prices and the export of raw materials, considering the significant role that Russia and Ukraine play in the international economic chessboard.
Italgas confirms that it does not have production activities or personnel deployed in Russia, Ukraine or countries geo-politically aligned with Russia, nor does it have commercial and/or financial relationships with such countries. Therefore, there are no materially significant restrictions to the execution of financial transactions through the bank system, even after the exclusion of Russia from the SWIFT international payment system. Nevertheless, in a market already characterised by restrictions and slowdowns in the procurement chain, especially in relation to components, we cannot rule out that the political and economic tension induced by the ongoing conflict might exacerbate such difficulties and have implications, in a way that cannot yet be estimated or predicted, on the effectiveness and timeliness of the Group’s procurement capacity.
With reference to the tensions on the financial markets, Italgas reports that it is marginally exposed to foreign exchange risk and in any case only against the US dollar. With regard to the availability of sources of financing and the related costs, it is reported that i) over 92% of Italgas’ financial debt is fixed rate, ii) the upcoming repayment of a bond envisaged for 2024 has no refinancing and/or liquidity requirements in the short term, iii) the Group in any case holds liquidity at leading credit institutions for an amount, as at 31 December 2021, of € 1,391.8 million, which, including in light of the existing investment plans and the operations planned over the next 18 months, would make it possible to manage any restrictions on access to credit with no significantly material effects.
With reference to the indirect risks associated with the sales companies that use the Italgas Group’s networks, if they are found to be suffering, in a deteriorated international scenario, from adverse commodity procurement conditions such as, for example, huge increases in the prices of the raw material that cannot be passed on to end customers resulting in a worsening of their financial conditions and related difficulty in regularly complying with their contractual obligations towards the Italgas Group, it is recalled that the rules for user access to the gas distribution service are established by ARERA and regulated in the Network Code, which defines the system for existing financial guarantees to protect the distributor.
Lastly, with reference to the risk of lower volumes of gas injected into the national infrastructure, as we know, the current tariff regulation does not lead to exposure of the distributors to changes in volumes of gas distributed. In any case, the risk of a prolonged interruption to injection of natural gas into the distribution infrastructure, which could impact in a significantly negative way upon the Group’s operating continuity, would nevertheless be mitigated by the actions already in place and/or being studied at national and European level, such as the optimisation of storage, the diversification of procurement sources and the increase in domestic output.
