Crown Estate reports third consecutive year of over £1bn profit
The Crown Estate, the property management company owned by King Charles, has reported a profit of £1.2bn for the last financial year, marking the third consecutive year it has exceeded £1bn in earnings. According to a report by The Guardian, two-thirds of this profit came from the offshore wind industry, with wind developers paying £875m in option fees to secure seabed leases. The income from wind fell by £198m from the previous year as two offshore windfarms began construction, allowing developers to pay a lower rate. The Crown Estate returned £487m to the Treasury, of which £132.1m was paid to the king to support royal duties, up from £86.3m the year before. The estate also plans to increase the annual pay of its chief executive, Dan Labbad, by nearly 20% to almost £2.33m. Labbad stated that a potential government led by Reform UK, which has vowed to end renewable energy subsidies, would not end the wind industry’s growth or income for the Crown Estate, and that the estate could work with industry players to set up direct energy supply deals.
What’s reported
Key figures
Sources: The Guardian
