– The discussion about board members should not cast doubt on the good development achieved by Ifeanyi

The debate over board members should leave no doubt about Ifeanyi's good development.

debate

This is a discussion post. The entry was written by an external contributor, and quality assured by BT's discussion department. Opinions and analyzes are the author's own.

The last time Ifeanyi has been raided. We who work in the company should not participate in the debate about who should be a member of the board of directors, and we should have confidence that our owners will solve this problem together. But the debate over board members cannot cast doubt on the proud development of Evene and our strategy to prepare Western Norway for the future.

This week we had a management meeting at Matre. A tour of one of our largest power plants provides a reminder of what the Ifeany Group story is really about:

A story of courageous, long-lasting choices, continuous development, creating enormous value for society, and skilled employees throughout Western Norway who develop and operate socially significant infrastructure.

For more than 100 years We have invested in developing hydroelectric and electric power networks. The creation of value and expertise has provided a starting point for the development of digital infrastructure in the field of fiber and electrical infrastructure to be able to replace the use of fossil energy. This has contributed to community development, building new highly skilled workplaces in Western Norway, and creating significant value for our owners.

Electricity is the most important climate measure in society, and the transportation sector is ours The largest source of emissions. Investments in express shipping in Ifeanyi have more than doubled in value, and the project has become something we Westerners should be proud of: an export success. Since the first charging station at Danmarks plas in 2014, today's skilled employees have made us the third position in fast charging in Norway, gaining a strong foothold in the Nordic countries, and in Germany, Eviny receives billions of dollars to support the expansion of fast charging stations.

Representatives from Major European ports come to Bergen to learn about Plug – a subsidiary of the Eviny Group and a leader in ship electrification in shore-powered ports. The plug was opened in May The first land-based power station outside Norway, at Montrose in Scotland.

By continuing to develop power plants, develop the grid and create new value from new projects, since 2016 Eviny has achieved an average annual return of 19 percent for our owners – the community. This is a higher return than both the Oil Fund and the Oslo Stock Exchange in the same period.

Our core mission They are and will continue to be investments in energy and networks. We are therefore pleased that the municipality of Bergen, as the second largest owner, shares our impatience and desire for Evene to develop further power. In our new group strategy, we have set a target of 2.5 TWh of new energy over the next 10 years, and we will double the grid capacity to meet growth in consumption.

However, the fact that more power has not been invested in recent years speaks more about national conditions than it does about Ifeanyi. Large hydroelectric power has been almost completely developed in our area; The potential to get more energy from our hydropower is a very small 0.2 TWh. There has been a complete standstill in wind energy concessions since 2019, and offshore wind is in its infancy in Norway. Overall, investments in renewable energy have fallen by 39 percent since 2018.

We are now upgrading already developed hydropower to increase impact. This will meet the community's need to balance power and increase the value of hydroelectric energy. However, increased energy production must come from other energy sources. Western Norway is the region that has the most to lose if we cannot achieve a significant increase in new energy generation. The demand for both energy and grid capacity is greatest in our region. Half of our region's energy consumption still comes from fossil energy sources. Industrial workplaces depend on access to more renewable energy at competitive prices. It is a social responsibility that we at Ifeanyi take very seriously.

Western Norway as a region We are facing a much-needed change in the pace of investments in energy and grids. Over the next 10 years, Eveny plans investments of more than NOK 40 billion in new renewable energy, energy and electricity networks. We are one of the energy companies in Norway that has historically provided the highest profits for its owners. Eviny can invest more because we've built significant value over time. It gives us access to responsible financing at the same time as we distribute profits. Moving forward it will be more volatilevolatilevolatile Energy prices impose demands on courageous choices and effective operation to achieve the social mission.

We will be the most value-creating energy and technology cluster in a crucial decade for Western Norway, and the best development arena for people passionate about solving the biggest challenge of our time. We will do our part to reach binding climate targets and secure future industrial jobs in Western Norway. Over the next 10 years, we will generate good profits for the community and invest in value creation for the better for Western Norway.

As a company, we want that We do our best to cooperate well with the Board of Directors around which the owners gather. Long-term, predictable and responsible ownership exercise is a prerequisite for us to be able to prepare Western Norway together for the future.