Saudi Electricity Company Achieves 18% Revenue Growth In 2024 With Record SAR60 Billion Capital Investments

The Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has reported its financial results for 2024, revealing total operating revenues of SAR88.7 billion. This marks an 18% rise from the previous year's SAR75.3 billion. The growth is attributed to sustained electricity demand, increased power generation, and expansion of regulated asset bases. Additionally, project development and management revenues also played a role in this increase.

SEC's net profit for 2024 was SAR6.9 billion, down from SAR10.2 billion in 2023. This decline resulted from a one-time expense of SAR5.7 billion due to settling long-standing disputes over fuel quantities and pricing discrepancies. Without this non-recurring cost, the adjusted net profit reached SAR12.1 billion, an 8.9% rise from the previous year.

Acting CEO Eng. Khalid Al-Ghamdi stated: "2024 marks a new phase of accelerated growth, operational excellence, and strategic investment in the future." He highlighted record-breaking revenues and significant capital investments as key achievements for SEC this year.

SEC's capital expenditures soared to SAR60 billion in 2024, reflecting a 44% increase from the previous year. These funds were allocated towards expanding power infrastructure, enhancing smart grids, improving generation efficiency, and upgrading service reliability.

The company continued its commitment to renewable energy by connecting 6.8 GW of renewable capacity to the grid by year-end. SEC is also working on projects with a combined capacity of 27.3 GW and has initiated tenders for an additional 33.2 GW of renewable energy projects.

To boost grid stability and efficiency, SEC commissioned Saudi Arabia’s first battery energy storage system (BESS) in Bisha with a capacity of 500 MW and advanced five more storage projects totaling 2,500 MW.

Regional Interconnections

SEC expanded regional grid interconnections with projects like the 3 GW Saudi-Egypt interconnection and feasibility studies for new connections with Italy, Greece, and India.

The company improved customer satisfaction to 82.3%, enhanced service quality and reliability, reduced average service connection time by 9%, and automated distribution substations at holy sites.

Financial Stability

SEC maintained a strong financial position by securing SAR57.2 billion in financing through various instruments such as sukuk issuances and loans to support its long-term growth strategy.

"Reflecting its solid performance and strategic outlook," Moody’s upgraded SEC’s credit rating from A1 to Aa3 with a stable outlook while Fitch raised it from A to A+, aligning with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign rating.

With inputs from SPA