(Alliance News) - ERG Spa has announced that the agency Fitch Ratings has confirmed a Long Term Issuer Default Rating of BBB- stable outlook and a senior unsecured rating of BBB- for the company.

"Fitch confirms that the group's business model remains sound, and benefits from positive long-term trends that outweigh short-term market uncertainties," reads the company's statement.

The rating confirmation, which follows the unveiling of the new 2024-2026 business plan, "takes into account the credibility of management's commitment to maintaining the Investment Grade, the recent entry into the U.S. market, which is positively evaluated, and a selective growth approach in the choice of investments."

In addition, the confirmation rewards the group's all-renewable portfolio, following the sale of the combined-cycle cogeneration plant, and its "quasi-regulated" business profile, which involves stabilizing more than 85 percent of Ebitda through the award of tariffs from participation in government auctions or from long-term Power Purchase Agreements.

Consistent with the Group's financial policy, which calls for a debt-to-Ebitda ratio of up to 4.0x over the Plan period, Fitch confirms the threshold for maintaining the current rating, in terms of "FFO Net leverage," at 4.4x.

ERG's stock closed Friday 1.6 percent in the red at EUR25.20 per share.

By Chiara Bruschi, Alliance News reporter

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