VERBUND AG — Earnings Release 2007

Jul 23, 2007

News Details

Ad-hoc | 23 July 2007 08:01

Österreichische Elektrizitätswirtschafts AG: Once again improvement in results in quarters 1-2/2007

Österreichische Elektrizitätswirtschafts AG / Half Year Results

Release of an Ad hoc announcement, transmitted by DGAP - a company of
EquityStory AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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Following a very positive business development in quarter 1/2007, the
Verbund Group, Austria’s leading electricity company, is again able to
present record mid-year results. Despite extremely difficult basic
conditions in quarter 2/2007 the results are well above the record results
of 2006. The sales revenue rose by 3.1 % to € 1,490.8 million, the
operating result could be improved by 4.9 % to € 447.4 million and the
group result increased by 19.6 % to € 329.9 million.

The control relevant key figures could also be improved. The EBIT margin
rose from 29.5 % to 30.0 %, the EBITDA margin rose from 35.5 % to 36.1 %
and the net gearing sank further from 88.4 % to 82,7 %. However, the
operational cash flow worsened – primarily on account of higher income tax
payments – by 16.9 % to € 384.3 million.

Key figures unit Q1-2/2006 Q1-2/2007 difference

Sales revnue € milion 1.445,8 1.490,8 3,1 %
Operating result € milion 426,5 447,4 4,9 %
Group result € milion 275,8 329,9 19,6 %
Net Gearing % 88,4 82,7 6,4 %
Operating cash-flow € milion 462,3 384,3 -16,9 %

Higher sales prices despite weak spot markets
In quarters 1-2/2007, the prices for day-ahead deliveries for base load on
the German electricity exchange EEX lay at almost 40 % below the
comparative value of the previous year. For peak load, the downturn
amounted to almost 37 %. Through its hedging strategy, which has been
successfully applied for years – approximately 60 % of the generated
electricity for 2007 was already sold in 2006 on a year-ahead basis –
Verbund was able to increase the average sales prices despite the strong
decline in the spot market prices.

Hydro coefficient significantly below the perennial average
In quarter 2/2007, the hydro coefficient only reached a value of just 0.78
and thereby lay 22 percentage points below the perennial average. The hydro
coefficient for quarter 1-2/2007 amounted to 0.87 and lay 13 percentage
points below the previous year’s value. This led to a decline of 673 GWh in
the generation of electricity from hydropower. The generation from thermal
power plants also showed a significant downturn on account of the low spot
prices. It declined by 577 GWh.

Investment in the Turkish energy company EnerjiSA
In quarter 2/2007, Verbund acquired 49.99 % of EnerjiSA, the electricity
generation company, from the Sabanci Group in Turkey. The acquisition
represents the first major step in the strategic partnership between
Verbund and Sabanci, which was announced mid March. The goal of EnerjiSA is
to operate a generating capacity of a total of 5,000 megawatts by 2015.

Positive outlook for 2007
The outlook for the entirety of 2007 remains positive despite the extremely
difficult basic conditions of the market environment. Based only on an
average hydro condition in the second half of the year it will be possible
to increase the operational result by 10 %, compared to the record year of
2006, and the group result by 15%.

Detailed information on the Verbund results for Q1-2/2007 can be found on
the Verbund homepage under www.verbund.at, where a user-friendly online
version of the quarterly report can also be viewed.

Contact:
Mag. Andreas Wollein
Leiter Finanzmanagement und Investor Relations
T.: +43 (0)5 03 13 - 52604
F.: +43 (0)5 03 13 - 52694
mailto:investor@verbund.at

DGAP 23.07.2007

Language: English
Issuer: Österreichische Elektrizitätswirtschafts AG
Am Hof 6A
1010 Wien Österreich
Phone: 0043-1-53113-52616
Fax: 0043-1-53113-52694
E-mail: andreas.wollein@verbund.at
Internet: www.verbund.at
ISIN: AT0000746409
WKN: 877738
Indices: ATX
Listed: Amtlicher Markt in Wien, Frankfurt (General Standard);
Freiverkehr in Berlin, München, Stuttgart

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