Centrica Pauses Spirit Energy Sale and Cancels Dividend
- Utility had planned to pay shareholders 3.5p per share
- ‘Substantial’ liquidity available to cover deferred payments
Flames rise on a gas combustion rig at the British Gas Energy Academy, in Leicester.
Photographer: Paul Hackett/Bloomberg
This article is for subscribers only.
Centrica Plc paused the divestment of its North Sea oil and gas assets and withheld its final dividend payment as the impact of the coronavirus ripples through the energy industry.
The biggest supplier of energy to U.K. homes also said in a statement on Thursday it would not pay any bonuses to its management for 2019 and that capital expenditure would be cut by 400 million pounds ($496 million). The worsening outlook comes less than two months after the company booked a 1.1 billion-pound charge on its Spirit Energy Ltd. arm and nuclear assets. Energy prices have slumped dramatically since then.