Success in nationwide sales and colder winter lead sales and earnings to improve in first half of 2008/09 - Dr. Müller (CEO): "We intend to and will emerge from the crisis in even more robust shape."

Success in the nationwide sale of electricity and gas and increased turnover in the district heating and gas businesses due to the colder winter have enabled the Mannheim-based energy company MVV Energie (ISIN: DE000A0H52F5, WKN: A0H52F) to absorb the negative impact of the economic crisis to date and to increase its sales and earnings in the past six months. Upon the presentation of the results for the first half of the current 2008/09 financial year (1 October 2008 - 31 March 2009) in Mannheim on Friday, Dr. Georg Müller, CEO of the SDAX-listed municipal utility group, stressed that the economic crisis had not simply passed MVV Energie by. However, with its strategic focus on competitiveness and energy efficiency, the company had consistently exploited the opportunities arising in spite of and in some cases even due to the crisis. "As a result, we intend to and will emerge from the crisis in even more robust shape," commented Dr. Müller.

The external sales of the MVV Energie Group rose year-on-year by Euro 376 million, or 27 percent, to Euro 1.8 billion in the first six months of the current 2008/09 financial year. EBIT before IAS 39, i.e. operating earnings adjusted for the non-cash income and expenses resulting from the valuation of energy trading transactions at fair value as of the reporting date, rose over the same period by 9 percent to Euro 212 million. The company also achieved improvements on a similar scale in its other key earnings figures for the first half of 2008/09. Earnings per share (before IAS 39) thus rose from Euro 1.41 to Euro 1.50.

Overall, Dr. Müller reported that the economic crisis had so far only had a marginal direct impact on MVV Energie's earnings. "Even if this were to intensify in the coming months, we nevertheless stand to benefit from our customer structure and broad range of business fields." Weather-related earnings growth, for example, had enabled the company to more than offset the impact of the crisis-driven decline in turnover in the industrial customer business and the reduction in commercial waste volumes at MVV Umwelt.

In terms of the overall 2008/09 financial year, based on the information currently avail-able, the CEO of MVV Energie therefore confirmed the expectation that it would be possible to increase the company's sales to Euro 2.8 billion and that its operating earnings before IAS 39 would fall only slightly short of the previous year's figure. "We have every reason to look to the future with confidence. And we are preparing ourselves intensively," he added.

This also applied to investments, an area where, according to the CEO, there had been no cutbacks. "On the contrary. We are continuing to invest in the future, especially in the form of major projects, such as the new Boiler 6 at the cogeneration plant on Friesenheim Island in Mannheim or the large-scale district heating expansion programme in the Rhine/Neckar metropolitan region." For the company's employees, this meant job security and no cause to fear reduced working hours or even job cuts. "We have rather been on the lookout for qualified staff in numerous areas for several months now."

At the same time, the MVV Energie Group is also benefiting from the changing framework in the energy market. "We entered the market at just the right time with our nationwide electricity fund and gas fund products. We have thus been highly successful, as industry and businesses are stepping up their efforts to find ways of reducing their energy procurement costs." This development has also benefited the energy-related services business field, whose business model is consistent with growing market demand for energy efficiency, energy saving and climate protection. In the environmental energy business, the company is making use of the quieter period due to the crisis-related reduction in industrial and commercial waste to combine pending maintenance and repair work with technical efficiency enhancements, and thus to prepare for the next economic upturn and resultant increase in waste volumes.

MVV Energie had to report a substantial decline in its electricity segment in the first half of the current 2008/09 financial year. In spite of 15 percent turnover growth and sales in-creasing from Euro 667 million to Euro 874 million, operating earnings in the electricity segment nevertheless fell year-on-year by Euro 15 million to Euro 24 million in the first half of 2008/09. According to the CEO, this was due to increased procurement costs, which could not be charged on to customers. At the same time, there was also a decline in the income from electricity generated at proprietary power plants. This was due to the fall in wholesale prices, which was not matched by an equivalent reduction in fuel costs.

Earnings were benefited, by contrast, from weather-related turnover growth in the district heating and gas businesses. Earnings in the district heating segment grew by 20 percent to Euro 72 million, while gas earnings, which were additionally boosted by the success of nationwide sales, rose from Euro 39 million to Euro 63 million. Earnings in the gas segment also benefited from positive one-off items, involving an amount of Euro 9 million in Kiel due to the heating gas deliveries used to generate heating energy being offset for the first time and an amount of 1.3 million in Mannheim due to the disposal of the gas grid in Heddesheim.

MVV Energie also improved earnings in its value-added services segment. Sales here rose year-on-year from Euro 137 million to Euro 157 million, while operating earnings (EBIT) rose from Euro 7 million to Euro 10 million. This growth was largely due to the launch of operations at the new cogeneration plant at the Continental AG factory in Korbach in Northern Hessen, and to increased heating contracting business at MVV Energiedienstleistungen in Berlin.

The downturn in the environmental energy business, where sales declined from Euro 97 mil-lion to Euro 96 million and operating earnings from Euro 43 million to Euro 38 million, was caused above all by reduced volumes and prices for commercial waste due to the economic crisis, as well as to downtime caused by inspection work and interruptions to operations. "The waste business is feeling the effects of the current economic downturn most keenly at the moment, and is certain to do so in the coming months as well. Moreover, market de-velopments are also taking their toll." At the same time, MVV Umwelt is currently closely investigating new market opportunities in the United Kingdom.

Mannheim, 15 May 2009

Key Figures of the MVV Energie Group
1 October 2008 - 31 March 2009

Euro million	2008/2009	2007/2008	% change
Sales excluding electricity and natural gas taxes	1 788	1 412	+ 27
EBITDA before IAS 391	284	266	+ 7
EBITA before IAS 391	212	194	+ 9
EBIT before IAS 391	212	194	+ 9
EBT before IAS 391	171	156	+ 10
Net surplus for the period before IAS 391	115	103	+ 12
Net surplus for the period before IAS 39 after minority interests1	99	91	+ 9
Earnings per share before IAS 391, 2 in Euro	1,50	1,41	+ 6
Total assets (as of 31.3.2009 / 30.9.2008)	4 343	3 787	+ 15
Equity (as of 31.3.2009 / 30.9.2008)	1 120	1 270	- 12
Investments3	84	93	- 10
Number of employees (as of 31.3.2009 / 31.3.2008)4	5 838	6 295	- 7
1 excluding non-operating valuation items for financial derivatives
2 increase in number of shares (weighted half-year average) from 64.7 million to 65.9 million    as a result of capital increase
3 investments in intangible assets, property, plant and equipment and investment property,    as well as payments for the acquisition of fully and proportionately consolidated companies    and other financial assets
4 including external personnel at Mannheim energy from waste plant

Note: The complete financial report for the 1st half of the 2008/09 financial year can be found on this internet site in the download section: continue