DGAP-News

EVN AG: Business development in the first quarter of the 2014/15 financial year - Seite 2

year period. Revenue development was positively influenced by full
operations at the Duisburg-Walsum power plant and the related sale of
electricity as well as the Group's natural gas marketing activities,
effects from the recent price decisions in Bulgaria and Macedonia and
higher revenue from thermal waste utilisation in Austria. These positive
effects more than offset the decline in the network business that was
caused by the reduction of the network tariff for electricity and a
temperature-related decline in the natural gas business.

Other operating income rose by EUR 26.1m to EUR 47.8m. This increase
resulted, above all, from the positive conclusion of the negotiations with
the city of Moscow over the sodium hypochlorite plant project, which led to
the sale of the shares in the project company during October 2014. The
share of results from equity accounted investees with operational nature
rose by 2.6%, to EUR 37.8m. The lower earnings contribution from EVN
Energievertrieb GmbH & Co KG, which resulted from the mild winter 2014/15
and the 10% average reduction in end customer prices for electricity as of
1 October 2014, was more than offset by higher contributions, among others,
from Rohöl-Aufsuchungs AG and Energie Burgenland AG.

In total, these developments led to an increase of 32.3%, in EBITDA to EUR
184.8m. Current depreciation and amortisation rose by 4.8%, to EUR 63.6m,
primarily due to the commissioning of the Duisburg-Walsum power plant and
the start of scheduled depreciation. Based on these developments the
results from operating activities (EBIT) totalled EUR 121.2m, a
year-on-year increase of 53.5%.

Financial results amounted to EUR -24.4m and were 33.2%, lower than in the
previous year. On balance, Group net result equalled EUR 73.1m, which
represents an increase of 66.1% over the first quarter of the previous
year.

Reduced net debt; solid balance sheet structure

Gross cash flow rose by 21.7% to EUR 166.6m in the first quarter of
2014/15, primarily due to the increase in the result before income tax as
well as a decline in the non-cash earnings components from equity accounted
investees and an increase in non-current provisions. The decline of EUR
93.9m in cash flow from operating activities to EUR 92.4m resulted from an
increase in working capital. Cash flow from investing activities amounted
to EUR 60.9m and was EUR 248.2m higher than in the first quarter of the
previous year. This increase resulted, above all, from the sale of the