Ørsted on May 1 reported higher first-quarter earnings from its offshore wind farms, in a positive sign for the Danish company's focus on renewables after selling its oil and gas business in 2017.
Earnings from Ørsted's core wind business rose 13% on the back of ramp-up in generation from the new farms Borkum Riffgrund 2 in the North Sea off the German coast and Walney Extension in the Irish Sea, the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
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Bernstein analysts said the results were "a good start to the year".
Ørsted's shares were up 1% in early trading on May 1. The stock is up almost 100% since its 2016 listing.
First-quarter EBITDA fell by 7% to $766.48 million, broadly in line with an Eikon Refinitiv forecast.
The lower year-on-year result was due to a one-off gain from an arbitration case in the same period a year ago and cyclically lower earnings from Orsted's gas activities.
The offshore wind division accounted for almost 80% of core earnings in the first quarter.
Ørsted plans to invest $30 billion in green energy up to 2025 as part of efforts to become one of a handful of future "renewable majors" leading a shift away from fossil fuels.
The company, which is already the world's largest offshore wind farm developer, said the green share of its heat and power generation increased to 80% in the first quarter up from 68% a year ago.
Ørsted has submitted bids for offshore wind projects in France, the Netherlands, and the U.S., and said it expects an outcome from these over the next three months.
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