SSE to pay divi of at least 74.5p

31st Mar 2011 07:09

Energy supplier Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) is on track to report underlying profit before tax for the full year in line with the consensus of analysts' forecasts, which currently stands at £1,301m.The company, which is about to enter its close period on Friday prior to publication of full year results on 20 May, said it expects to deliver a full-year dividend increase of at least 2% more than Retail Price Index inflation, and of at least 74.5 pence per share.Capital and investment expenditure for fiscal 2011/11 is slated to be around £1.5bn.The company gave an update on its renewable energy development projects, including four wind farms, the Beauly-Denny replacement electricity transmission line, the Aldbrough gas storage capacity and the Glendoe hydro electric scheme. All are progressing as planned."We have made solid progress in recent months. Discipline in project assessment, development and execution remains paramount for the rest of this financial year and beyond," said chief executive, Ian Marchant. ---jh