The Group financial statements were approved for publication by the Board of Directors on 27 March 2015. They are subject to the approval of the Annual General Meeting, which will take place on 29 April 2015.
On 15 January 2015 the Swiss National Bank announced the removal of the 1.20 floor on the CHF/EUR exchange rate. The amounts stated in these financial statements were converted at the closing exchange rates on 31 December 2014 or at the average exchange rates for 2014, and therefore do not take account of developments in exchange rates after 31 December 2014. The effect of a lower Swiss franc/euro exchange rate on Repower's group results was analysed in the section on currency risks in Note 6 (transaction exposure). If the Swiss franc remains strong by comparison with the rate on 31 December 2014, this will also lead to losses in the next financial statements on the translation of the functional currency of the foreign Group companies into the reporting currency (translation exposure). These losses, which will be recognised directly in other income under equity, will amount to around CHF 15 million in the event of a 10 per cent devaluation of the euro. Ultimately a firmer Swiss franc has a negative impact on profitability. By way of sensitivity analysis, a 10 per cent devaluation of the euro can be expected to erode EBIT by between CHF 6 and 9 million.
In a 9 February 2015 ruling, the Italian constitutional court deemed the so-called Robin Hood tax, an extra tax on energy companies introduced in Italy in 2008, to be unlawful. In the future the subsidiaries in Italy will no longer be subject to this income tax. The resulting 6.5 per cent reduction in the tax rate will affect the level of effective and deferred tax expense (tax income) and the measurement of recognised tax assets related to loss carryforwards in the future. In 2015 Repower will have tax expense of around CHF 4 million on the basis of the adjustment of the tax rate for deferred tax assets and liabilities.
The Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom) has issued a partial ruling on Repower's electricity tariffs on the basis of its examination of grid usage charges and electricity prices in 2009 and 2010. The partial ruling ascertains that Repower did not charge improper electricity tariffs in 2009/10. ElCom even concluded that the full costs were not passed on to customers. However, there are differences between the calculation methods used by ElCom and Repower. Particularly at issue is whether or not power plants, interests and long-term contracts allocated by Repower for its domestic and international trading activities have to be included in the calculation of basic supply tariffs. Repower has therefore decided to lodge an objection with the Federal Administrative Court.