ScottishPower’s overall profits rise to £900m

Spanish-owned energy giant ScottishPower has declared its support for Britain staying in the EU.

Chief corporate officer Keith Anderson said while it was a “matter for the British people” to decide, it was the company’s position that the UK was better off being part of the EU.

“From tackling emissions to strengthening security of supply, the UK benefits from being part of a greater European market,” Mr Anderson said.

His comments came as ScottishPower, which is part of the Iberdrola group, reported an 8% drop to £332 million in earnings from its retail and generation business in the UK.

The annual results also show the units were hit by lower energy prices, higher taxes for generation emissions and the cost of a new customer service system.

Iberdrola also took a £235m writedown on the soon-to-close Longannet Power Station in Fife.

Earnings overall for ScottishPower rose 11% to £900m thanks to a better performance from its renewable arm on the back of a full year’s production at West of Duddon Sands offshore windfarm.

The company’s customer base held firm at 5.5m gas and electricity accounts in 2015.

Parent company Iberdrola posted a 4.9% rise in earnings to £5.8 billion for the full year.

It also set out a £18.9bn five-year investment plan, a third of which (£6.3bn) has been earmarked for projects in the UK.

Part of the cash will go towards the East Anglia ONE development – a project that will eventually become the world’s biggest offshore windfarm.

Iberdrola recently gave the final green light to invest £2.5bn in the windfarm, with construction due to start in 2017 and the first turbines installed by 2019.

Chief corporate officer Keith Anderson.