National Grid reported a 3 per cent drop in pre-tax profits to £2.9 billion as it counted the costs of demolishing old gas holders in the UK and remediation of old gas production sites in the US. The FTSE 100 utility group booked £633 million in one-off charges for the future cost of the work, offsetting a 14 per cent surge in adjusted operating profits. Andrew Bonfield, finance director, said £526 million related to restoring three large sites in America where coal used to be turned into methane gas, while £107 million related to future plans to dismantle dozens of gas holders in the UK.
Times 19th May 2017 read more »