26 June 2024
Drax Group plc
("Drax", "the Group", "Drax Group", "the
Company"; Symbol: DRX)
Sale of
SME customer book
Drax has reached agreement for the sale of up
to 90,000 Small & Medium-sized (SME) customer meter points from
Opus Energy Group Limited (Opus) to EDF Energy Customers
Limited.
The transaction is an asset sale for the
majority of the Opus customer meter points and follows the
completion of a strategic review of the Group's non-core SME energy
supply business.
Opus was acquired by Drax in 2017. Over the
past seven years elements of the acquired business have been
transferred to Drax Energy Solutions, the Group's core Industrial
& Commercial (I&C) energy supply business(1).
Those transfers include the renewables business holding the Group's
Power Purchase Agreements with renewable generators, and certain
other customers.
Drax believes that these measures further
support its decarbonisation strategy and the development of its
Energy Solutions (Customers) business which is focused on I&C
customers, renewable power and energy services. The Energy
Solutions business is unaffected by the sale of the Opus SME assets
and there is no change to the Group's Energy Solutions EBITDA
expectations as a result of this process.
The transaction is subject to regulatory
assessment and is expected to complete in Q3 2024.
Notes:
(1) In 2017 Drax
acquired Opus for £367 million, of which £159 million was goodwill,
£224 million intangible assets and £16 million other net
liabilities.
In 2023, following a reorganisation,
goodwill of £145 million was reallocated between Opus and Drax
Energy Solutions on a relative value approach as specified by IAS
36, and the remaining £14 million of goodwill was
impaired.
As at 31 December 2023 £218 million
of the intangible assets had either been amortised or impaired,
leaving a de minimis amount in relation to Opus carried forward
into 2024.
Notes 2.4 and 5.2 of the 2023 Annual
Report and Accounts provide further details.
Enquiries:
Drax Investor Relations: Mark
Strafford
mark.strafford@drax.com
+44 (0) 7730 763 949
Media:
Drax External Communications: Andy
Low
andy.low@drax.com
+44 (0) 7841 068 415
Website: www.Drax.com
END