Eesti Energia made €33.3 million in Q2 of 2022, which grew to €50.6 million this year, even though the company's sales revenue was unchanged from one year to the next at €416 million.

The company made 63 percent of its sales revenue outside Estonia, in Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and other markets. Growth of sales revenue was fastest in the latter coming in at 44 percent to €88.7 million.

Over the first six months of 2023, Eesti Energia has made €193.2 million in profit at a turnover of €998.8 million.

Eesti Energia CFO Marlen Tamm said at a press conference on Thursday that sales volume is down around 3 percent since last year, with gas contributing the biggest change. "Gas consumption fell everywhere in Europe, including our customers, when the war and energy crisis started."

The share of renewables in the company's output grew by some 20 points to 43 percent in the first half-year compared to the same period in 2022. The sales volume of liquid fuels grew in Q2 by 18 percent to 124,700 tons.

The group's Enefit 280 plant produced over 25,000 tons of liquid fuels in June for a new monthly output record. Eesti Energia has plans to manufacture chemical components through post-processing of liquid fuels in the future in place of its oil chemistry business.

Tamm also pointed to Eesti Energia's contribution to the state budget. The company paid €22.6 million in environmental taxes and €68.9 million in dividends in the second quarter.

"If we compare this to the €120 million the government hopes to find through a car tax, we see the relative importance of Eesti Energia in making up the budget."

Around 70,000 customers still on the universal service

Andrus Durejko, member of the Eesti Energia management board, said that the market is uncertain and what will happen in fall unpredictable. The price of shale oil is growing, the price of oil is fluctuating and CO2 remains expensive. Durejko added that energy prices should nevertheless not skyrocket.

"I believe we will not be seeing last year's levels," he added.

The energy company's representative said that low gas prices are impacting Eesti Energia as its oil shale plants cannot compete with gas-fired power plants.

Home customers have started to prefer fixed prices. While people tended to opt for the market price before the energy crisis, around 60 percent of Eesti Energia customers are now looking to lock down the price they pay.

Estonia's universal electricity service, introduced as a price ceiling guarantee during the peak of the energy crisis, is still available, even though Eesti Energia has urged people who were automatically switched to the universal service to pick another solution. Durejko said that around 70,000 customers have the universal service package, while 65,000 are on the firm's general service contract the price of which is tied to the former. He added that Eesti Energia plans to make the latter cheaper in the near future.

Durejko also highlighted the development of Eesti Energia's chemistry business and record liquid fuels output.

"We will soon come to a situation where Estonia will get all of its energy from solar panels on sunny days, meaning that all other production capacity needs to be aimed at export. It will be a very interesting market situation."

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