To assess whether Enel S.p.A. is suitable to issue hybrid bonds, we must evaluate its financial health, specifically focusing on leverage, interest coverage, cash flow generation, and its existing track record with hybrid instruments. 1. **Existing Track Record with Hybrids**: The company already has a substantial amount of hybrid bonds outstanding. The "Equity Instruments Perpetual Hybrid Bonds Member" stands at €5.567 billion as of the end of 2022, showing that Enel is an established issuer in the hybrid capital market. The market and rating agencies already recognize and accept Enel's hybrid structures as equity-creditworthy. 2. **Leverage and Balance Sheet**: - Total Equity: €42.08 billion - Total Liabilities: €177.54 billion - Total Assets: €219.62 billion - Financial Debt (Long-term borrowings of €68.19bn + Short-term borrowings of €18.39bn + Current portion of LT borrowings of €2.84bn) totals €89.42 billion. - Net Financial Debt is roughly €78.02 billion (Total financial debt €89.42bn minus Cash & equivalents €11.04bn). - The Net Financial Debt to EBITDA ratio is approximately 5.6x (€78.02bn / €13.9bn, where EBITDA is approximated by Operating Profit €11.19bn + D&A €7.45bn + Impairments €1.28bn - Other work capitalized €3.42bn). While this indicates high leverage, issuing more hybrid bonds is precisely a tool such utilities use to receive 50% equity credit from agencies, thereby improving the adjusted leverage metrics while still paying tax-deductible coupons. 3. **Interest Coverage**: - EBITDA is around €13.9 billion. - Finance costs for the period were €5.88 billion. - The EBITDA-to-interest coverage is robust at roughly 2.4x, which is generally considered adequate for an investment-grade utility to service its debt and additional hybrid coupons. 4. **Cash Flow Generation**: - Cash flows from operating activities remained strong at €8.674 billion, sufficiently covering the significant capital expenditures (Purchase of PPE €11.28bn + Intangibles €1.96bn) and dividend payments (€4.9bn). The company's ability to generate consistent operating cash flow provides comfort regarding its capacity to service perpetual hybrid coupons, which are discretionary but crucial to maintain for equity credit. Given Enel's strong operating cash flows, established history as a hybrid issuer, and the strategic usefulness of hybrids for an infrastructure-heavy utility to manage its leverage ratios, the company is highly capable of issuing such instruments. Therefore, it is assessed as strongly suitable. Strongly Suitable