Spain's Enagas Q1 net profit rises 20%

MADRID (Reuters) -Spanish gas grid operator Enagas said on Tuesday that its first-quarter net profit rose roughly 20%, helped by revenue from the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal of El Musel and flat expenses.

With gas demand in the country down for two years in a row and Spain's ambitious green hydrogen plans, the company - in which the Spanish state owns a 5% stake - is looking to transition from its traditional role as natural gas grid operator to managing a network of hydrogen infrastructure

Net profit for the period was 65.3 million euros ($69.56 million) compared with 54.6 million euros a year earlier.

Last year, energy firm Endesa won a three-year contract for the El Musel plant's logistic services - namely unloading, storage and reloading - after the plant had been mothballed since its completion.

The company said it was on track to meet its profit target of between 260 million euros and 270 million euros for the year.

($1 = 0.9387 euros)

(Reporting by Pietro Lombardi; Editing by David Latona)