10 Companies sold
Compensation for the transfer of the Swiss high-voltage grid
On 3 January 2013, Alpiq transferred its share in the Swiss high-voltage grid to national grid operator Swissgrid Ltd based on provisional contribution values. It is was not possible to provide a final calculation of the value of individual assets at this point in time, as proceedings relevant for the measurement were still pending. Furthermore, in the 2016 financial year, Alpiq received higher compensation for transferring its share in the Swiss high-voltage grid on account of the new ruling by the Swiss Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom) on the measurement method.
On 9 February 2021, ElCom issued rulings on the margin differences of the former company Alpiq Grid Ltd. Gösgen and Alpiq Grid Ltd Lausanne in 2011 and 2012. It also issued a ruling on their regulatory values at 31 December 2012. These rulings became legally binding in March 2021. Based on these rulings, the second measurement adjustment will be made to offset the remaining difference between the amount already compensated at the transfer date and the amount ordered by the court ruling. In addition, the final value is calculated in accordance with the new ruling in 2016. The calculations for all parties providing in-kind contributions are carried out by the same independent company. Alpiq expects the audit of the calculation and the preparation of the fairness opinion to be completed by another independent company in the second half of 2021.
At present, Alpiq does not have all the information required to provide an accurate calculation of the final compensation amount. This matter is therefore subject to estimation uncertainty. Based on the information available and considering the fact that the final audited measurements are not yet available when the 2021 interim consolidated financial statements are approved by the Board of Directors of Alpiq Holding Ltd., Alpiq used judgments to estimate the fair value of the final compensation amount expected (including interest). In this context, additional sales proceeds of CHF 10 million, including margin differences in 2011 and 2012, were recorded under “Other operating income” in the first half of 2021. Interest components of CHF 5 million were recognised as interest income. The final compensation amount (including interest) will not be known until the fairness opinion has been issued. This is expected to result in a further positive effect on earnings for Alpiq.
Discontinued operations
In 2018, Alpiq sold the Engineering Services business, which comprises the Alpiq InTec Group and the Kraftanlagen Group. These operations were classified as discontinued operations. Therefore, all income and expenses in connection with this sale continue to be posted to “Earnings after tax from discontinued operations”.
As part of the sale of the Engineering Services business, Alpiq must bear any fines and costs of Kraftanlagen München GmbH resulting from the proceedings started by the state prosecutor of Munich I and the German Federal Cartel Office in the first quarter of 2015. There were no material developments in this regard in the first half of 2021. For more information, please refer to note 5.2 of the notes to the 2020 consolidated financial statements of the Alpiq Group.
Alpiq still deems it unlikely that Kraftanlagen München GmbH will be convicted, resulting in the decision not to record a liability for this matter.
Income statement of discontinued operations
|
CHF million |
Half-year 2021/1 |
Half-year 2020/1 |
|
Expenses |
|
– 2 |
|
Effect from reviewing the provisions for warranties and indemnification |
|
2 |
|
Earnings after tax from discontinued operations 1 |
0 |
0 |
1 No income tax was incurred on the earnings from discontinued operations.
The cash outflow in connection with indemnification and warranties to Bouygues Construction came to CHF 1 million in the first half of 2021 (previous year: CHF 13 million). According to the sales agreement, these payments are treated as an adjustment to the sale price. They are therefore contained in the statement of cash flows under “Net cash flows from investing activities of discontinued operations”.