"In good waters": Hera's transparency on the water cycle
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The first nine months of the year closed with strong growth in revenue and investments, and with all key operating and financial indicators positive, in line with the first two quarters and the targets set out in the Business Plan

Operating and financial highlights
- Revenue rises to 9,365.6 million euro (+10.6%)
- EBITDA stable at 1,037.2 million euro
- Net profit for the period up to 324.6 million euro (+4%)
- Gross operating investments at 666.8 million euro (+18.8%)
- Net financial position at 4,147.2 million euro and net financial position/EBITDA ratio at 2.6x, an improvement compared to September 2024
- Return on invested capital increases, with ROI at 9.9%
Key industrial guidelines
- Organic growth of the multi-business portfolio. The strong performance of the water and waste sectors offsets the absence of the temporary opportunities seized in 2024 within the energy segment.
- Expansion of the operational scope. Strengthening continues through M&A and joint venture initiatives (Ambiente Energia, CircularYard) and through the full consolidation of subsidiaries EstEnergy, Hera Comm, and Aliplast via the acquisition of minority interests.
- Value creation capacity. Solid operating performance and efficient financial management support earnings growth and the profitability of invested capital.
- Ample room for development. Cash generation and financial flexibility provide the basis for new organic and external growth initiatives, consistent with the objectives of the Business Plan.
Today, the Hera Group’s Board of Directors, chaired by Executive Chairman Cristian Fabbri, unanimously approved the consolidated quarterly report at 30 September 2025, which confirms a positive structural performance and strong growth in revenues and investments compared to the same period of the previous year.
Cristian Fabbri, Executive Chairman of the Hera Group:

“Over the past nine months, leveraging cash generation and our strong financial flexibility, we have focused on the Group’s structural growth: we have doubled our operating investments aimed at development, increasing investments by almost 20% in both regulated sectors and free-market businesses. We furthermore completed a number of M&A transactions and repurchased the minority stakes in EstEnergy, Aliplast and, at the beginning of October, Hera Comm, all of which are now 100% owned. These persistent growth drivers, combined with the strength of our multi-business portfolio, enabled us to offset the loss of certain temporary opportunities and resulted in an increase in return on equity, now close to 10%. These results demonstrate that we are fully on track to achieve the objectives set out in our Business Plan.”
Orazio Iacono, CEO of the Hera Group:
“Strong operating performance and steps towards financial optimisation supported growth in net profit attributable to Shareholders, which rose by 4.2%. The macroeconomic scenario remains complex, but signs of stabilisation in the energy market, combined with our ability to generate cash flow and margins – with the net debt/EBITDA ratio at 2.6x – now allow us to pursue development opportunities with even greater momentum. One non-negotiable principle remains at the heart of our industrial strategy: sustainability must go hand in hand with competitiveness. All our investments in technologies and services aim to strengthen this connection, improving resilience, innovation and the quality of our offer. Only in this way can we reconcile the Net Zero 2050 target with the growth of local areas and the well-being of communities.”
Double-digit growth in revenue, at 9.4 billion euro
At 30 September 2025, the Hera Group’s revenue amounted to nearly 9.4 billion euro (9,365.6 million euro), increasing by more than 894 million euro compared to the same period in 2024, up +10.6%, mainly linked to the increase in energy commodity prices and the higher value of gas and electricity volumes traded.
EBITDA stable at 1,037 million euro
EBITDA for the first nine months of 2025 remained substantially stable with respect to the previous year, amounting to 1,037.2 million euro. Lower margins in the energy areas (–23.3 million euro) were offset by positive results in the water cycle and waste management services. The comparison with 2024 should however take into account the 85 million euro in extraordinary margins recorded that year, linked to temporary non-recurring opportunities (mainly last resort markets and eco-bonuses). Adjusted for these effects, EBITDA at 30 September 2025 shows structural growth coming to 9%, supported by contributions from all the Group’s core businesses, exceeding the 7% average annual growth rate forecast in the Business Plan for the period to 2028.
Profit before income tax above 457 million euro
Ebit for the first nine months stood at 519.9 million euro, down slightly (-0.5%) compared to the same period in 2024, mainly due to the increase in depreciation and amortisation linked to new investments in regulated sectors and waste treatment, while provisions decreased thanks to the normalisation of the energy market. Effective operational and financial management, which saw a 27.5 million euro reduction in expenses thanks to a rationalisation of the debt structure and a reduction in IAS expenses, led to a profit before income tax of 457.2 million euro, up 5.5% compared to the 433.5 million euro seen at 30 September 2024.
Net Profit up 4%
Despite the increased tax rate, at 29% (vs 28% the previous year), net profit at 30 September 2025 reached 324.6 million euro, up 4% compared to 312.1 million euro in the same period of 2024. At the same time, net profit attributable to Group Shareholders also grew, reaching 294.7 million euro (+4.2% compared to 282.9 million euro at 30 September 2024).
Strong growth in operating investments and confirmation of the Group’s financial solidity
At 30 September 2025, operating investments, including capital grants (34.2 million), amounted to 666.8 million euro, up by almost 106 million compared with the same period in 2024 (+18.8%). The areas that benefited most from development and regulatory compliance measures were the integrated water cycle (over 243 million euro in investments, 68 million euro more than the figure seen at 30 September 2024), the waste management area (almost 30 million euro more over one year) and the gas area (+11 million).
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"In good waters": Hera's transparency on the water cycle
Tenth annual appointment with the Group's report on an essential service. The value of the multi-utility's investments in the sector continues to increase: over 156 million euro in 2017 compared to 130 million last year. Excellent quality of the resource supplied, guaranteed by over a million analyses, of which more than 134,000 in the Bologna region alone

"In buone acque" turns 10 years old
It's the tenth birthday of the "In Good Waters" report that Hera Group prepares to provide detailed and easy-to-read information on the water cycle it manages in 231 municipalities of Emilia-Romagna, Marche, and Triveneto. As the second-largest operator in Italy by volume of water supplied (303 million m3 per year), Hera Group serves over 3.6 million citizens.
This report is for them, the everyday users of the water resources the multi-utility manages, to fully inform them on the quality of the water coming out of their taps; a quality that is ensured by strict monitoring.
This is proven by the number of analyses carried out last year throughout the company's entire service area: a total of over a million, more than 2,800 per day, on average.
The analyses, 38% of which were carried out in the Group's laboratories, also concerned the presence of pesticides and non-regulated aspects, such as emerging pollutants and asbestos fibres. Of the checks carried out, 99.9% yielded results compliant with regulatory limits, confirming the safety of the water Hera distributes.
Bologna's water: 134.000 quality assurance analyses
In 2017, over a million Bologna residents used a water resource the quality of which was certified by more than 134,000 analyses carried out in the laboratories of the Hera Group and the ASL (local public health authority).
The possibility of using tap water on a daily basis depends on the plant resources used by the company to distribute the service: in the Bologna area, tap water comes from 660 sources and travels through more than 9,000 km of aqueduct network, into which 108.4 million m3 of water are fed every year. This ensures a constant and adequate supply.
Hera: water-related investments 32% above the Italian average
Not only aqueduct but also purification and sewerage; managing the water service means taking care of the entire water cycle, meaning not only its distribution in homes but also the sewerage service and wastewater treatment. This is why the Hera Group has always focused most of its investments in the water sector: in 2017 they exceeded 156 million euro, compared to 130 million euro the previous year (+19%). More specifically, it invested 41% in the mains water network, 32% in the sewer system, and 27% in water treatment.
Compared to a national average of 37 euro invested per inhabitant, in the area served by the Hera Group investments in 2017 were about 49 euro per inhabitant. The magnitude of this commitment has allowed Hera to work on more than 35,000 km of its aqueduct network, about 18,600 km of sewerage, 469 water treatment plants and 422 production and drinking water purification plants. All this against a cost of just two euro per thousand litres of tap water, about half of what consumers pay in other European nations.