7 Nov 2016

Trustpower profit falls amid demeger costs

11:46 am on 7 November 2016

Energy company Trustpower has reported a lower half-year profit because of costs related to its demerger.

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Photo: 123rf

The company recently split into a New Zealand retail power company and a largely Australian renewable energy business.

Net profit fell to $56.8 million in the six months to September from $60.6m last year.

Group revenue climbed to $510m as it added more customers and the churn rate remained below the market average.

Trustpower chief executive Vince Hawksworth said the half-year result was strong.

"While the market remains highly competitive, Trustpower's customer churn rate is still consistently lower than the market average, and we expect the higher penetration of bundled services to further reduce churn in future," he said.

Mr Hawksworth said Trustpower was on the lookout for mergers and acquisitions.

Looking ahead, Trustpower will continue its pursuit of profitable growth...it will continue to seek technology opportunities to improve customer experience and drive product growth and will also remain focused on optimising the value generated by its generation assets," he said.

A dividend of 16 cents will be paid next month.