Empower revenue soars 6% to AED494mn in first quarter

DUBAI / WAM 

Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation PJSC (Empower), the world’s largest district cooling services provider, which is listed on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM), reported its first quarter 2023 consolidated financial results, recording quarterly revenue of AED494 million and Ebitda of AED284 million.
For the last twelve months, Empower’s consolidated revenue was AED2.82 billion (April 22 to March 23) compared to AED2.53 billion (April 21 to March 22), showing an impressive growth of 11.5 percent. The Ebitda for the similar periods was AED1.40 billion (April 22 to March 23) compared to AED1.26 billion (April 21 to March 22), with a growth of 11.1 percent.
The company’s first quarter 2023 revenue and Ebitda grew by 6.0 percent and 8.2 percent respectively. For the same period, Empower’s pro forma net profit grew by 5.7 percent to AED191.6 million. This pro forma net profit comparison adjusts for pre IPO leverage to show comparable quarterly performance. On an absolute net profit basis, Empower reported a net profit of AED167.4 million.
The company’s exceptional growth during the first quarter of 2023 is attributed to a significant rise in demand for its services across various regions of Dubai, particularly from newly added mixed-use projects to Empower’s portfolio, and a noteworthy surge in production and operational capacity during the first quarter of this year.
The growth of 2023 is primarily fuelled by the rise in recurring and sustainable revenues resulting from the boom in various economic sectors and markets in Dubai, notably the real estate sector, which is the mainstay of the company’s business.
During the first quarter of 2023, Empower entered into several exclusivity agreements including concessions agreements with major real estate development projects. In February this year, the company signed an agreement with the Dubai Maritime City (DMC) to provide its projects district cooling services with a capacity exceeding 63,000 refrigeration tons (RT), and in March 2023, Empower signed an agreement with Sobha Real Estate to provide 17,000 RT district cooling services for the Sobha Hartland project. Moreover, the company signed agreements for several other buildings in various parts of Dubai, including Business Bay, Jumeirah Village Circle, Dubailand, Dubai Studio City, DIFC, Jumeirah Lake Towers, and Barsha Heights, the total cooling capacity of these agreements reached 24,000 RT. Furthermore, Empower started operating its new district cooling plant in Dubailand with a total production capacity of 47,000 RT, which will provide cooling services to residents of the Dubai Land Residence Complex (DLRC).
Ahmad bin Shafar, CEO of Empower, said, “The results of the first quarter of this year consolidate the company’s position on more than one level, including by confirming its leadership in the global district cooling markets, and highlighting its superior ability to meet the demand for district cooling services with standards that exceed its global counterparts, regardless of the size, time or location. The results also reinforce Empower’s strong and effective presence and its capability to attract investors to the Dubai Financial Market, motivated by their confidence in the company’s strong base to continue achieving growth in terms of sustainable revenues and profits.”
Bin Shafar stressed that Empower is determined to continue to grab investment opportunities in the market and to maintain its outstanding performance to ensure rewarding and sustainable returns for shareholders.
He concluded that the company will continue investments in its portfolio of assets and infrastructure to serve the growing demand in the region’s district cooling market.