(Reuters) - SSE (L:SSE), Britain's second-biggest energy supplier, raised its full-year profit outlook as windier weather drove a 25 percent rise in production from its renewable energy plants.
The supplier said it expects to deliver adjusted earnings per share in the range of 116 to 120 pence. In November, the company said it expects earnings that would be at least in line with the consensus forecast of 116 pence.
The company lost 40,000 customers in the third quarter of its financial year, slightly lower than the 50,000 customers it lost in the quarter before.
SSE also said its plans to merge its UK power and gas retail operations with those of npower, owned by Germany's Innogy (DE:IGY), was on course to be completed by the last quarter of 2018 or the first quarter of 2019.
(This version of the story corrects company name to SSE from SSC in fourth paragraph)