yes there has been benefits fallen from heaven in the electrical. During the presentation of the results obtained in 2022, the managers have been denying it time and time again, but when the turn came to Endesaits CEO, Jose Bogas, has admitted it bluntly: his company obtained 500 million euros of “extraordinary profits” last year. What’s more, he has admitted that if it hadn’t been for the cap on ‘benefits from heaven’ imposed by the Government – by limiting the compensation of nuclear and hydroelectric– Another 6,000 million would have rained on Endesa alone due to the perverse effects (for consumers) of electricity regulation, exacerbated by a gas price that reached the clouds due to the effect of the war in Ukraine.
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The Government has decided to impose two temporary taxes on the large banks and energy companies, to tax the extraordinary benefits obtained by both sectors at the same time that families and other productive sectors suffer the rigors of the inflation and the sudden rise in prices interest rates. Until now, all managers in these two sectors have denied the existence of windfall profits: if the big bank managed to earn 20,850 million in 2022, 28% more than in 2021 (after discounting the extraordinary impacts of that time) was due to the process of “normalization” of interest rates and if the four main energy groups they have earned a total of 12,780 million in 2022, 41% more than in 2021, it has not been due to benefits fallen from heaven, but due to market circumstances.
But Bogas has recognized “extraordinary” benefits in the sector. He has done it to argue that those profits, and not the income, is what the Government should have taxed if it wanted to be consistent with its own rhetoric: “I agree that they tax me for the extraordinary profits of those 500 million dollars.” euros”. And by arguing like this, by the way, he has made it clear: yes there were benefits fallen from heaven.