Enel exec: Argentina reforms herald 'start of new era'

Improved financial results in 2015 and subsidy reform in 2016 have heralded "the start of a new era" for Argentine utility Edesur, said an executive from parent company Enel.

Thanks to the lifting of price controls in the power sector by President Mauricio Macri's government, "we now have a stable legal framework that will allow us to plan our investments in a more effective manner," Enel's country manager for Argentina, Maurizio Bezzeccheri, said in an earnings statement.

Edesur reported full-year net income for 2015 of 1.34bn pesos (US$93.9mn), compared with a net loss of 1.36bn pesos in 2014.

Financial assistance from then president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's government, as well as income from an energy efficiency incentive program for consumers, drove the improvement, Edesur said.

Edesur invested 2.50bn pesos in improvements to its distribution network in 2015, up 21% from the previous year.

The results follow news that Edesur and fellow Buenos Aires power distributor Edenor will invest US$400mn in infrastructure upgrades in 2016.

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