Hello, my name is Chris, and I'll be your conference operator today. At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to the Fondul Proprietatea Q1 2023 results conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you'd like to ask a question during this time, simply press star then the number one on your telephone keypad. To withdraw your question, press star one again. Thank you. Marius Dan, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Corporate Strategy, you may begin.
Thank you. Good afternoon and welcome everyone to our conference call to discuss the first quarter 2023 results of Fondul Proprietatea, as well as the April 2023 net asset value developments. Johan Meyer, CEO of Franklin Templeton, Bucharest branch, as fund manager of Fondul Proprietatea. Călin Meteș, Deputy CEO. Cătălin Cadariu, Financial Reporting Manager, and I are pleased to host today's call. The first quarter 2023 quarterly report can be found on the fund's website in the financial results section, and the presentation that we will be discussing is available on our website at www.fondulproprietatea.ro in the investor relations call section. After the presentation, we will have a 30-minute Q&A session. As a reminder, the call is being recorded. The recording will be available on the fund website after the call.
That being the agenda, I'll now turn to Calin to start off with the presentation. Calin.
Thank you, Marius. Good afternoon, everyone. I would like to start with the slide two of the presentation, where we highlight the key facts about the funds. At the end of April, the fund's NAV was roughly RON 14.31 billion. That means around $6.2 billion. And the NAV per share reached RON 2.65. On the right-hand side, you can see the evolution of the fund, the NAV per share price, and discount, previously the fund was listed in January 2011. As of yesterday's close, the fund was trading at a discount of roughly 21% for the shares, and 19.7% for the GDRs. On slide three, we present the fund's shareholder structure as of April 3rd, 2023.
There are no major changes since our last results conference call in February, 2023. The cancellation of shares brought back during 2022 was approved during the 2023 annual shareholders meeting. On slide four, we show a summary of the NAV, share price, and GDR performance since 2011, and the evolution of the fund's average annual discount on the Bucharest Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange. The NAV total return in the 1st quarter of this year was 0.5%. The total return for the local shares was 3.2%, while the total return for GDRs was 6.5%. For the 1st four months of this year, the NAV total return was 5.1%.
The total return for the local shares was 2%, while the total return for GDRs was 6.5%. On slide five, we show the contribution to the fund's NAV performance for the first quarter. As you can see on this slide, on slide five the NAV per share increased by 0.5% mainly as a result of the tender offer that was finalized in March and the share price evolution according with the Bucharest Stock Exchange. As you can see, the main contributors in the first quarter of this year were ALRO, Mecon, and IOR. The bottom performer for the quarter was Romaero. This is a small holding in the fund's portfolio.
The fund will continue to closely monitor the evolution of financial markets and that of the specific industries that the unlisted holdings operate in, and if necessary, an update of the multiple analysis will be prepared, and the valuation of unlisted holdings will be updated accordingly. In the next section, we would like to give an update on funds portfolio. On slide seven, we show the portfolio structure as of end of April. As such, 23% of the NAV is in unlisted companies, 1.2% in unlisted equities, and 5.8% is net cash and receivables. Net cash and receivables position as of end of April, stood at approximately $186 million.
Slide eight, we present the main portfolio companies at the end of 3rd of April 2023, which represents 92% of the fund's NAV. Hidroelectrica is the biggest holding, representing approximately 76% of the fund's NAV. The next slide nine and 10, we present some updates on the largest holding of the fund of Hidroelectrica. Slide nine, we show the financial and operating figures, operational figures for the first quarter of this year. According to the management, the company registered in comparison to the first quarter of last year, revenues of RON 3.4 billion , which was up 37% compared to the first quarter of last year. An operating result of RON 2 billion , up 33%. EBITDA of RON 2.2 billion , up 34%.
Net profit was also up 34%, RON 1.7 billion. The total electricity sold was up 45% to 4.8 terawatt-hour, while electricity sold out of own production was up 38% to 4.4 terawatt-hour. The average realized electricity selling price was flat compared to the first quarter of last year at approximately RON 656 per megawatt-hour. According to the management, over the first three months of this year, the company registered total costs with the wind power tax of RON 230 million, which is 32% lower compared to last year. The turbinated water cost was up by 40% to RON 264 million due to the higher production level registered by the company.
At the end of March 2023, the cash and cash equivalent position of the company stood at approximately RON 4.9 billion. The total interest-bearing debt amounted to RON 474 million compared to RON 555 million compared to this amount of last year. The interest-bearing debt was lower this year compared to the last year. It's important to note that also the company approved the dividend payout for this year. It was a 90% payout of the net profits. The total distributable profit for this year, which the company, which Electrica will pay is around RON 3.91 billion, out of which Fondul Proprietatea will cash in RON 780 million.
This is to be paid on the 16th of June to Fondul. Shareholders approved the payment of a special dividend by Hidroelectrica in the total amount of RON 435 million. Fondul Proprietatea will cash in around RON 87 million. This amount will be paid end of September. On the corporate governance front, this is slide 10. Please note that on the 28th of March 2023, the shareholders appointed a new supervisory board with a four-year mandate. Out of the seven board appointments, Mr. George Niculescu , Mr. Silvia Oram, and Mr. George Tonuț , who are acting for the first time as board members on the supervisory board, while Mr. Mihalache, Mrs. Carmen Radu, Mr. Károly Borbély , and Mr. Daniel Naftali have been reappointed.
Subsequently, on 21st of April 2023, the shareholders approved the revocation of Mr. George Niculescu from the supervisory board of Hidroelectrica following the termination of his mandate contract through mutual agreement. Mr. Niculescu was appointed by decision of the Romanian parliament as President of ANRE starting with 23rd of April 2023. Following the court case initiated in 2020 by an employee of the company, in April 2022, the Bucharest court annulled the recruitment procedure and the selection process that was carried out by the company during 10th April and 4th of June 2019 for the selection of the 5 members of the directorate. According to the decision, the company is obliged to issue a new decision for a new recruitment process.
The appeal filed by Hidroelectrica was rejected by the Bucharest Court of Appeal in a ruling issued in March of this year. Starting with 7th of April 2023, all five members of the directorate, who are Mr. Bogdan Badea , Mr. Andrei Gerea, Mr. Marian Bratu, Mr. Răzvan-Tiberiu Pătaliu , and Mr. Cristian Vladoiu, were reappointed on an interim basis for a four-month period. Regarding the company's IPO, we at Hidroelectrica continue to prepare for an IPO during 2023. As you all know, the Romanian state had committed in PNRR for the listing of Hidroelectrica by the end of June of this year. On slide 11, we present the 2022 figures for Bucharest Airports.
On the financial side, we see an increase of 73% of the operating revenues compared to last year. Operating revenues at least reached almost RON 1 billion. The operating results recorded a level of almost RON 345 million, which is significantly higher compared to the results of last year of 2021, which when they were only RON 41 million. Net income was also 8x higher compared to previous year to RON 304 million. These good results were as a result of the increased traffic in the airport which reached record high levels in the first quarter of this year of 3.1 million passengers.
This is over 3% higher than pre-COVID levels in Q1 2019, and 54% higher year-on-year. On slide 12, here we present some updates on Enel. As we already announced to the market, the fund and the Greek company Public Power Corporation had concluded on 19th of April of this year an agreement for the sale of all the equity stakes held by the fund in Rețele Electrice Muntenia , Enel Energie Muntenia, Rețele Electrice Dobrogea , Rețele Electrice Banat , and Enel Energie in exchange for a total consideration of RON 660 million.
The completion of the sale under the SPA is subject, among others, to the closing of the transaction between Enel and PPC. Based on the information provided by Enel and PPC, they expect the transaction to be closed in the first quarter of this year. On slide 13, we present some updates on Enel and ENGIE. We have a few orders, several orders issued by ANRE, the energy regulator, approving the new tariffs for this year, both for the distribution and for electricity companies. The gas distribution tariffs for ENGIE are on average 57% higher compared to last year.
While for the electricity companies, so for the Enel distribution companies, the tariffs, the distribution tariffs have increased on average by roughly 12% this year compared to last year. On slide 14, we show the 2022 figures for Constanta Port. The revenues have increased by 15% year-on-year and have reached RON 450 million. Operating profit was RON 132 million, down from RON 141 million of last year. Net profit was also 12% down to RON 150 million. On the corporate governance front, all board members have interim mandates. The selection for the four-year mandates for the board members has not yet been initiated.
Regarding the Salrom's results on slide 15, the operating revenues increased by 32% to almost RON 500 million. Operating profit was RON 134 million, almost double compared to last year. While net income was also doubled to RON 121 million. On the corporate governance front, in January of this year, the shareholders approved the relaunch of the selection process for board members based on Ordinance 109, with the selection procedure being conducted at the level of the Ministry of Economy. Regarding the company's IPO, the fund continues to engage with the majority shareholder and the company in relation to preparation for a potential IPO, in the context of the protracted process for the appointment of the company directors under the corporate governance rules applicable to state-owned entities.
On slide 16, we show key financials for the fund's largest holdings, including 2022 figures, approved or which are pending shareholders' approval. We are moving on to the next section of the presentation, to corporate action section, and I would like to invite Marius to comment on that.
Thank you, Călin. If we look on slide 18, this is where we outline the fund's distribution since we started managing Fondul Proprietatea. The 2023 amounts that you see on the slide are based on the buybacks that have been executing so far, the daily buyback. The tender offer, as well as the dividend distribution, which was approved by the shareholders during the 21st April annual general shareholders meeting. The number of paid shares excluding treasury shares as of 11th of May. At this point, the daily buybacks, the daily execution of the 14th buyback program, which has started on the 3rd of January, is currently suspended.
The amounts that were referenced earlier, including the dividends that we will be receiving from Hidroelectrica, the regular as well as the special dividends and the proceeds from the Enel transaction, are not reflected on this slide. The total distributions that we have made since 2010, including the current the amount spent for 2023, have reached over RON 18.1 billion, which is approximately $4.7 billion. As mentioned earlier, there will be more to come in 2023. On slide 19, we outlined the latest updates on the fund's buyback program. The 14th buyback program started on the 3rd of January, 2023.
During the last shareholder meeting, the annual shareholder meeting from the 21st of April, the fund shareholders approved the cancellation of shares that were bought back last year. That process is currently ongoing. If we move on to slide 20, we show the main details of the tender offer that has been successfully completed. The offer ended on 13th of March. We were able to acquire 225 million shares in the form of global shares as well as GDRs. The share price is RON 2.119.
That share price for the tender offer is important because in case there will be any other tender offer for the remainder of the year, based on Romanian regulations, we are not able to offer a share price that is lower than the maximum share price paid over the last 12 months. This is the 2.19 RON per share. Moving on to slide 21, we include the details on the fund's annual net dividends and dividend payout ratios for the largest portfolio companies as of the end of April.
Based on the numbers that and the decisions that have already been taken by the shareholders of our underlying portfolio companies. The total amount for 2023 is RON 700.7 million , and that is the Hidroelectrica annual regular dividend. If we move on slide 22, you will see the special dividend which was referenced by Călin earlier, which brings the total dividend income in 2023 based on the results of the underlying portfolio companies in 2022 to approximately RON 868.4 million . Of course, there we do expect this number to increase based on the additional shareholder decisions that will be taken in the coming weeks.
Moving on to slide 2023, this is where we show the upcoming investor relations events for Fondul Proprietatea, and we do hope to see as many of you as possible in the coming months. The fund financial results for the period are included on slide 25 and 26. I would like to invite Cătălin Cadariu, Head of Financial Reporting to comment.
Thank you, Marius. On slide 25, you can see the statement of financial position at the end of March. The decrease in the liquid assets by approximately 61% was due to the outflows from the buyback program, and mainly to the settlement of the tender offer that was mentioned previously. The decrease in the equity investment portfolio for the first quarter of 2023 was generated by a reclassification of the Enel holdings following the signing of the related SPA with PPC. These holdings are presented separately on the statement of financial position. Moving to the next slide 26. Fondul ended Q1 with a loss of approximately RON 11 million. The main income was represented by the interest income from the deposits placed with banks.
During the quarter there were no significant updates to the valuation of unlisted holdings in the portfolio. Therefore, the results for the first quarter are not affected by these elements, while the dividend income, as mentioned earlier, is mainly approved and booked during the second quarter. Thank you, Marius.
Thank you, Cătălin. At this point we would like to open it up for any questions that you have. I will start with the first question received online from Deepinder. Thank you for the question, Deepinder. I noticed that the NAV change year to date until April 30th shown on page 4 of the presentation is +5.1%. The NAV change in first quarter shown on page 5 is only 0.5%. What has been the driver of the approximate 4.5% increase in the NAV in the month of April? 5.1 less 0.5%. Cătălin, would you like to comment?
Sure. The NAV correctly was affected by several factors, the most important of which being the dividends approved by Hidroelectrica on the 28th, which was booked as a receivable. Consequently, the valuation was updated for the company. However, the valuation decrease was not as high as the dividend because other factors were taken into account. Another factor that impacted the NAV was the dividends approved by the fund shareholders also in April. The NAV at the end of April is ex-dividend.
Thank you, Cătălin. The next question also from Deepinder. Any updates on the status of the Hidroelectrica listing? I'll invite Johan to comment.
Yeah. Thanks, Marius, and thanks for the question, Deepinder. I'm sure you can appreciate that the closer we get to the actual event, the less we can say. I will, however, comment that we are very hard at work, as is Hidroelectrica, with, of course, the support of the equity advisors and the banks. We hope to deliver this as soon as possible. And all the required sort of steps are currently ongoing. I can say that I think we are making very good progress.
Thank you, Johan. The next question comes from Caius Râșnoveanu from BCR. Can you please elaborate on the management situation of Hidroelectrica? What would happen after the 4 months of interim management?
Marius, there is a requirement for the supervisory board to initiate the selection process for the appointment of the management board on a full mandate. We expect that to take place in due course. We expect that the management board will be appointed prior to the expiration of the interim mandate.
We don't have any further questions, online. I would like to check if there are any questions from the phone.
As a reminder, if you would like to ask any question over the phone, please press star then one on your telephone keypad. We'll pause for just a moment. It appears that we have no questions by phone.
Okay. It looks like we have no further questions. We would like to thank you very much for your time today, and we look forward to seeing many of you in person soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions, do reach out to us. Have a good weekend.
Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's conference call and webcast. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.