Holding & Services Segment

Business development in the Holding & Services Segment

Sales revenues in the Holding & Services Segment in the reporting period were EUR 281.0 million; this is equivalent to an increase of 8.9% compared with the previous year (EUR 258.1 million).

The EBIT of the Holding & Services Segment fell from EUR 46.6 million in the previous year to EUR -10.6 million in the 2022/2023 fiscal year. In the previous year, the measurement of the shareholding in BBOÖ Breitband Oberösterreich GmbH (BBOÖ GmbH) in the amount of EUR 37.0 million and reversals of impairment on the investment in Wels Strom GmbH, which is accounted for using the equity method, in the amount of EUR 3.5 million had a positive effect on EBIT in the Holding & Services Segment.

The entities measured using the equity method and allocated to the Holding & Services Segment generated significantly lower earnings contributions in the reporting period than in the fiscal year 2021/2022. The EBIT contributions of the service entities allocated to the Holding & Services Segment as well as of the Energie AG Oberösterreich Telekom GmbH (Telekom GmbH), declined slightly in operating terms, one reason being higher expenses.

New strategic orientation in the Telecom unit

The 2022/2023 fiscal year was characterised by the development and implementation of the “Wholesale Campaign” and “Added Value Offerings” strategic drive. While the former was aimed at improving results on the external fibre-optic market, the focus of the added value offerings was on a targeted expansion of the portfolio for partners within the Energie AG Group.

The volume of internet data transmitted in the telecommunications business area increased further, amounting to 111,920 terabytes (TB) in the 2022/2023 fiscal year (previous year: 88,670 TB). Numerous measures in the scope of the “Wholesale Campaign” significantly grew what was already healthy demand for broadband connections. Data transmission reliability was also maintained at an excellent level with a security of supply (= data connection availability) of 99.98% (previous year: 99.99%). A new disaster-resilient network was established in response to increasing customer demand for resilient telecommunications services. This makes it possible to offer premium services with far higher reliability. The successful wholesale campaign is being pushed forward with innovative products and targeted offers for internet service providers.

Internet data volume transferred

in TB

In order to be prepared for a blackout scenario in terms of service provision within the Group, numerous technical and organisational improvements were implemented in the past fiscal year in close consultation with the Group's internal partners.

The interfaces of Telekom GmbH with the BBOÖ GmbH FTTH joint venture were also successively further developed in the past fiscal year.

Strategic investments

The companies Wels Strom GmbH, Salzburg AG and BBOÖ GmbH, consolidated at equity, as well as further minority holdings complete the business portfolio of Energie AG.

Wels Strom GmbH, in which Energie AG holds a 49% participating interest, is the integrated electricity supply company of the city of Wels. Other business areas include services relating to electromobility and energy systems for key account customers.

It proved possible to partially cushion the escalating price trend in the energy sector in 2022 thanks to rolling procurement, which meant that inevitable price increases were capped or delayed.

In the last full fiscal year (1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022), proprietary electricity generation increased by 6.2% year-on-year to around 115 GWh (net generation).

The electricity sales volume to customers fell to 710 GWh (previous year: 742 GWh), 16% of which was covered by proprietary production, mainly from hydroelectric power. Some 48% of the electricity distribution was generated outside the grid area of Wels Strom GmbH.

The “Future Initiative Wels” project, which was developed in collaboration with eww ag, Umwelt Service GmbH and Erzeugung GmbH, was successfully brought to a close in the 2022 fiscal year. Operational management of the hydropower plants was assumed by Erzeugung GmbH with effect as of 1 January 2022. District heating generation and supply was transferred to Umwelt Service GmbH on 1 May 2022 and the corresponding Wels Strom GmbH generation plants were closed. eww ag has operated the electricity grid, which is still owned by Wels Strom GmbH, since 1 January 2022.

Salzburg AG für Energie, Verkehr und Telekommunikation (Salzburg AG), in which Energie AG holds a 26.13% interest, has consistently pushed forward with the expansion of renewable energies despite the unprecedented upheavals on the energy markets that resulted in historically high price levels and the need to deposit massive securities and ultimately provoked price increases.

The turmoil on the energy markets in particular is a drastic reminder of how important the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy is to achieving independence. Salzburg AG has revitalised the Rotgülden hydropower plant, upping production by more than 4 GWh; this means that an additional 1,100 households can be supplied with clean electricity from hydroelectric power. In addition, the approval plans for the Stegenwald Salzach power plant (electricity generation of some 73 GWh per year) and the Sulzau am Obersulzbach hydropower plant (electricity generation of around 18 GWh per year) were finalised and the building decisions were taken.

With a view to decarbonising Salzburg, district and local heating from biomass and industrial waste heat are also hugely important. Construction of the Siezenheim II biomass CHP plant began in 2022; it will supply 8,300 households with district heating and 9,700 households with green electricity in future. Parallel to this, expansion of the public and private charging infrastructure for electric vehicles is being consistently pushed forward.

Business performance in the most recently completed fiscal year (1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022) was characterised by increased volatility on the wholesale markets. Sales to end users fell to 3,307 GWh (previous year: 3,387 GWh). The trading volume of around 10,723 GWh was more or less on a par with the previous year (10,708 GWh). Generation from hydroelectric power fell by 3.3 % compared to the previous year, totalling 1,344 GWh (previous year: 1,390 GWh).

There was a decline in total sales of natural gas in the 2022 fiscal year, with 1,813 GWh sold to end users (previous year: 1,793 GWh).

The telecommunications unit has seen constant growth for years; this is again the case in the 2022 fiscal year. It again proved possible to increase the number of internet customers, while the number of cable TV connections fell slightly. Again this year, internet trade magazines “connect” and “PC Magazin” confirmed that Salzburg AG offered the best performing internet in the entire Province of Salzburg.

Additions to non-current assets totalled EUR 269.5 million (previous year: EUR 185.7 million). This includes EUR 28.4 million in investments in generation plants (previous year: EUR 16.1 million). A total of EUR 98.3 million (previous year: EUR 57.7 million) was invested in property, plant and equipment for the electricity grid. In the telecom technologies unit, the corresponding figure was EUR 41.1 million (previous year: EUR 38.5 million).

In the 2022 Salzburg AG fiscal year, the reorganisation of local public transport in the central Salzburg region was discussed intensively and a comprehensive financing and organisational model was developed. A resolution on this by the owners to bundle the transport agendas in a separate subsidiary in the future was passed in September 2023.

BBOÖ Breitband Oberösterreich GmbH is a company founded in 2022 by the Province of Upper Austria and Energie AG Oberösterreich; a 50% share is indirectly owned by the Province of Upper Austria via the Upper Austrian state holding company, while Energie AG Oberösterreich holds a further 50%.

The entity's aim is the rapid expansion of the fibre optic infrastructure in the Province of Upper Austria and providing access to the fastest transmission bandwidths at equal and fair conditions. The intent is to set up a non-discriminatory fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network independently of internet service providers in accordance with uniform standards as notified by the European Commission.

In the course of the 2022 fiscal year, the business purpose of BBOÖ GmbH was changed by means of reorganisation to active operation of fibre optic networks. The expansion of a universally available fibre-optic network, was spun off to the subsidiary Breitband Oberösterreich Infrastruktur GmbH.

Shared services

The four Group-wide service companies

• Energie AG Oberösterreich Business Services GmbH (Business Services GmbH),
• Energie AG Oberösterreich Customer Services GmbH (Customer Services GmbH),
• Energie AG Oberösterreich Personalmanagement GmbH (Personalmanagement GmbH) as well as
• Energie AG Oberösterreich Tech Services GmbH (Tech Services GmbH)

are combined in the Holding & Services Segment.

These service companies provide commercial and technical services for the entire Group in accordance with precisely defined quality and safety standards. These services are guided by external market conditions for similar products and services.

Business Services GmbH bundles services for the Energie AG Group in the areas of purchasing and logistics, real estate management, information technology, accounting, and insurance and legal services. The focus of work in the 2022/2023 fiscal year was on completing the implementation of the “digital logbook”, and the implementation of steps to grow user awareness and improve IT security. An extensive Group-wide SAP-S/4HANA transformation project is proceeding according to schedule. Additionally, the structural and civil engineering work for a new office and workshop building in Gmunden was completed, and work on the interior and on facility technology started. The construction project for a new office and canteen building in Timelkam was also launched in the reporting period, and involved the approval of the feasibility study,the implementation of various official procedures and the preparation of the invitation to tender.

The Customer Services GmbH bundles the Group's customer services and data protection back office, billing, provider switch management, receivables management and payment processing in customer-facing operations. In the 2022/2023 fiscal year, employees provided services for around 1.57 million customer contracts. In addition to the reliable provision of all services, the 2022/2023 fiscal year was characterised by the implementation of many projects. In the reporting period, the specific focus was on “Implementation of the Electricity Cost Subsidy Act”, “Implementation and fulfilment of the Supplementary Electricity Cost Subsidy Act” and the price reduction and discounting campaigns in the electricity and gas sectors.

The focus of Personalmanagement GmbH's activities is both on matters related to personnel strategy and personnel policy for the Group, governed by the Holding division “HR Strategy and Control”, and on all agendas relating to personnel and management development, personnel support, personnel accounting and apprenticeship programs. Employer branding measures, tailored for specific target groups, were implemented in the reporting period to secure the required human resources/skills. These activities are becoming even more important in view of the growth strategy defined in the “LOOP” project.

As the provider of all technical services at Energie AG, Tech Services GmbH is the central owner of know-how in the Group. The services include conceptual design, project planning, construction, maintenance and prompt troubleshooting of electricity, gas, and telecommunications infrastructures as well as power plants, especially in the field of hydroelectric power, heat, photovoltaics and biogas plants. The main challenges in the 2022/2023 fiscal year, partly caused by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, included supply difficulties and high price volatility for key material resources. In view of the increased expansion of electricity grids and generation plants in the scope of the energy transition, a need for additional personnel resources is anticipated in the next few years. Various process-oriented and organisational measures directly in the work environment, accompanied by internal employer branding and increased communication, are intended to support the recruitment of specialists and the retention of qualified employees at an early stage.