Corporate Credit Rating 2025 for UTILITÀ SPA: B1- (Affirm)

modefinance published the Solicited Corporate Credit Rating of UTILITÀ S.P.A. on the website and the rating assigned to the entity is B1- (Affirm). The analysis revealed that the Company has an adequate economic and financial situation and can face adverse economic conditions in the medium and long term.

UTILITÀ S.P.A., a key company within Metano Nord Holding Group, was founded in 2000 to offer consulting services primarily aimed at SMEs for the optimization of energy costs. After steady growth, the Company is now a prominent trader in the Italian energy market, engaged in the purchase and supply of electricity and natural gas to large companies, small-medium enterprises, professionals, and other industry traders.

At the end of the 2024 financial year, Utilità S.p.A. presented a balanced economic and financial picture, showing improvements compared to the previous year. Despite an 11.2% decline in turnover relative to 2023 - due to lower average energy commodity prices - the company recorded an increase in added value and operating margins. Notably, EBITDA rose to €1.78 million, representing a 177.5% increase from the previous year and resulting in improved margins of 1.6%. The financial year ended with a net profit of €160,000, a significant improvement from the €500,000 loss recorded in 2023. From a financial standpoint, the company continued to reduce its key financial leverage indicators, reflecting a generally strong solvency profile. The gradual repayment of financial debt, along with the partial collection of accrued excise tax receivables, led to a positive cash position regarding financial exposure. Cash flow analysis shows that the company’s solid self-financing capacity, combined with effective working capital management, allowed it to independently repay its maturing financial obligations.

The Company has a collegial administrative body, supported by the Board of Statutory Auditors. The auditing activity is entrusted to KPMG S.P.A. The Company has also adopted the 231 Organizational Model, with Supervisory Board conducting periodical audits. The group structure is well defined: the Company is controlled by Metano Nord Spa and does not hold any shareholdings.

Compared to its sector peers, the Company has a satisfactory position in terms of size and solvency, while its profitability ranks below the industry median. The peer group, which shows strong profitability, overall demonstrates a sound and improving financial condition.

The fundamentals of the energy sector in Italy have improved, supported by the stabilization of gas and electricity prices and a reduction in volatility compared to the record levels seen in 2022. However, the increasingly strategic role of LNG (liquefied natural gas) in the energy mix — accounting for 38% of the gas imports in the EU in 2024, up from 20% in 2021 — as a replacement for Russian pipeline gas, entails higher procurement costs and exposes Italy to potential price increases driven by global market dynamics (such as rising gas demand in Asia, changes in U.S. shale gas extraction policies, etc.).

At the macroeconomic level, GDP growth remained modest in 2024 due to tight financial conditions - with interest rates still high in the Eurozone – and inflation hovering around 2%, which weighs on household spending and investment. Global growth is also potentially affected by heightened geopolitical tensions and a tightening of U.S. trade policy.

The present rating is solicited and is based on both private and public information. The rated entity and/or related third parties have provided all private information used. modefinance had access to some accounts and other relevant internal documents of the rated entity and/or related third parties. Solicited and unsolicited ratings issued by modefinance are of comparable quality, as the solicitation status has no effect on methodologies used. More comprehensive information on modefinance Corporate Credit Ratings are available at: http://cra.modefinance.com/en

The present Corporate Credit Rating is issued on MORE Methodology 2.0 and Rating Methodology 1.0. A comprehensive description of both methodologies, as well as information on modefinance Rating Scale and Mappings, is available at http://cra.modefinance.com/en/methodologies.

For information on historical default rates of modefinance Corporate Credit Ratings please refer to ESMA Central Repository: https://registers.esma.europa.eu/cerep-publication/ and ESMA European Rating Platform https://registers.esma.europa.eu/publication/searchRegister?core=esma_registers_radar.

modefinance refers to default as a company under bankruptcy, or under liquidation status, or under administration or for which missed payments on a financial obligation are officially recorded.

The quality of the information available on the rated entity and used to determine the present rating was judged by modefinance as satisfactory.

Please note that modefinance does not perform any audit activity and is not in a position to guarantee the accuracy of any information used and/or reported in the present document. As such, modefinance can accept no liability whatsoever for actions taken based on any information that may subsequently prove to be incorrect. The present credit rating was notified to the rated entity in order to identify potential factual errors, as prescribed by the CRA Regulation. No amendments were applied after the notification process.

The rated entity is not a buyer of ancillary services provided by modefinance. The rating action issued by modefinance was performed independently.

The analysts, members of the rating team involved in the process, modefinance Srl and its members and shareholders do not have any conflicts of interest in relation to the Rated Entity and/or Related Third Parties. If in the future a potential conflict of interest is identified in relation to the persons reported above, modefinance Ratings will provide the appropriate information and if necessary the rating will be withdrawn.

The present Credit Rating is an opinion of the general creditworthiness that modefinance issues on the rated entity, and should be relied upon to a limited degree. The issued rating is subject to an ongoing monitoring until withdrawal.

Head Analyst - Stefano Chrisich, Rating Analyst
stefano.chirsich@modefinance.com

Responsible for Rating Approval - Naomi Busdon, Rating Process Function
naomi.busdon@modefinance.com