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Tallgrass sale hits Enagas first half results

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Expects loss of between 80-90 mln euros in 2024

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Deal will help Enagas lower its debt

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Enagas trying to diversify from gas business

(Adds forecast for 2024, details on diversification plans)

By Emma Pinedo and Pietro Lombardi

MADRID, July 23 (Reuters) - Spanish gas grid operator

Enagas warned of a loss for the year on Tuesday after

booking a capital hit resulting from the sale of an asset in the

United States.

Enagas reported a 210.8 million euro ($229.50 million) net

loss for the first half of the year, compared with a 176.8

million euro profit a year earlier. It now expects to post a

loss of between 80 and 90 million euros for 2024 as a whole.

Excluding the sale impact, Enagas said it would have posted

a profit of 148 million euros.

It said it had booked a 360 million euro capital loss on the

sale earlier this month of its 30.2% stake in U.S. energy

infrastructure company Tallgrass Energy for $1.1 billion. Enagas

expects to close the transaction by the end of this month.

The proceeds will allow Enagas to cut its debt by 1 billion

euros to 2.4 billion euros this year and thus give it leeway to

invest into green hydrogen projects.

Excluding the accounting effects of asset sales, Enagas

expects to meet its previous net profit target of between 260

million euros and 270 million euros.

The U.S. sale follows other disposals in Chile and Mexico,

as the company refocuses on Spain and Europe.

With Spanish gas demand down for two years in a row, Enagas

- in which the state owns a 5% stake - is moving to diversify

from its traditional gas business.

Taking advantage of the government's plans to transform the

country into a European green hydrogen leader, it wants to

transition from its traditional role as a natural gas grid

operator to managing a network of hydrogen infrastructure.

It expects net investment of around 3.2 billion euros

through 2030 to develop its planned hydrogen trunk network in

Spain and its flagship trans-European H2Med corridor.

To help fund the plan, it has slashed its dividend plans for

the next three years.

($1 = 0.9185 euros)