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| Strabag reports 2012 first-half results Strabag SE, Central and Eastern Europe's largest construction company, announced its figures for the first half of 2012. The Strabag Group's output volume in the first half of 2012 – as in the first quarter – fell slightly by 2 % to € 6,036.18 million. The largest reduction was registered in Poland due to the end of the construction boom in that country. For some time a clear trend has been developing toward a reduction of the output volume in the Transportation Infrastructures segment with simultaneous growth in the other segments. The consolidated group revenue amounted to € 5,701.12 million, down 4 % relative to the previous year. In the second quarter, a decline of the revenue was registered by 5 % to € 3,508.46 million. The order backlog reached € 15,124.13 million at the end of the second quarter 2012, a 2 % plus over the end of June the year before. While the high order backlog of the previous year from the large infrastructure projects in Poland was continuously worked off and transformed into output, Strabag was awarded several new large projects at the beginning of 2012: the Pedemontana Lombarda project to build a bypass around the city of Milan, Italy, added about € 1 billion to the Strabag order books, and in Germany a Strabag subsidiary was awarded several important building construction contracts. The earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was down significantly from € 197.18 million to € 16.14 million in the first half of 2012. This is due above all to non-operating effects in the second quarter – the second-quarter EBITDA fell from € 256.99 million to € 90.48 million: the unusually high other operating expenses include, among other things, damage compensation expenses in the amount of € 43 million related to the ruling by an arbitral tribunal regarding the failed acquisition of the Cemex activities in Hungary and Austria – a ruling which Strabag has appealed – as well as noteworthy transfers of losses by consortia. The EBITDA was further burdened by a loss of associates resulting from the inclusion of an equity investment in a cement company in Central and Eastern Europe. At € 10,351.35 million, the balance sheet total remained more or less unchanged in comparison to the end of 2011. The equity ratio fell from 30.3 % at the end of 2011 to 28.5 %, which can be explained by the losses sustained in the year to date. Instead of a net cash position, as was the case at year's end and after the first quarter, the seasonal losses and the capital expenditures led to net debt in the amount of € 458.20 million. Despite the negative cash-flow from earnings of € -26.97 million in the first half of 2012, the cash-flow from operating activities, at € -327.40 million, was just 12 % more negative than during the same period the year before. This is due to the lower growth of current trade receivables, particularly thanks to the completion of a large Danish project. Caution with investments in property, plant and equipment, with intangible assets and with enterprise acquisitions resulted in a decline in the cash-flow from investing activities by approximately a quarter from € -301.64 million to € -220.20 million. The cash-flow from financing activities was shaped by a significant repayment of bank borrowings, which, however, was compensated by an increase of the funds from the bonded loan and from the bond. As a result of the dividend and the buyback of own shares, the cash-flow from financing activities still moved into negative territory from € 45.85 million to € -67.07 million. The management board of Strabag SE believes that the target of € 300 million for the 2012 earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), which had previously been classified as "more than ambitious", could be reached only by about two thirds. write your comments about the article :: © 2012 Construction News :: home page |