EDF earned in the first quarter revenues up 34.6% compared to last year at the same time, to 47.8 billion euros, driven by rising market prices. “The marked increase in turnover is mainly due to an increase in the selling prices of electricity and gas, resulting from the rise in market prices, particularly in France and the United Kingdom, explains the group, which does not provide quarterly figures on its performance.
However, this increase is limited by the price shield introduced in France to curb the rise in consumer bills and by a drop in gas consumption. The electricity giant EDF suffered a massive loss of 17.9 billion euros in 2022, widening its debt to an equally record level of 64.5 billion euros, at the end of a dark year weighed down by setbacks on its nuclear fleet but also by its forced contribution to the “tariff shield” of the French.
For this first quarter, the group delivered 85.2 TWh of nuclear electricity in France, i.e. 6.5 TWh less than in the 1st quarter of 2022. This drop is linked to the lower availability of the fleet, due to the shutdowns imposed by the examination and repairs of circuits affected by a corrosion phenomenon, as well as the effects induced by social movements. EDF keeps the same estimate of nuclear production in France for 2023, at 300-330 TWh.
