Wednesday, May 02, 2012
Gulf News
Abu Dhabi: District cooling utility Tabreed said yesterday its fiscal first-quarter net profit rose 15 per cent on year to Dh36.8 million.
However, the company said in a statement its revenue declined 11 per cent on the year to Dh219 million for the quarter ended March 31.
[This was] in line with expectations as the company continues to phase out the non-core businesses and focus on the core chilled water business, Tabreed said. Its chilled water revenue during the first quarter increased 5 per cent, year-on-year, to Dh193.2 million.
Our performance in the first quarter of 2012 builds upon last years achievements in establishing Tab-reed as a stable utility business. I am pleased Tabreed recorded increased operating and net profit while delivering on its strategy of focusing on its core chilled water business, Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi, Tab-reeds chairman said in the statement.
Growth outlook
He added: Looking ahead, Tabreed will continue to grow by delivering its scheduled build-out programme.
Commenting on Tab-reeds quarterly results, Anastasios Dalgiannakis, head of trading at Dubai-based Mubasher Financial Services, told Gulf News: From the operating angle, it seems, Tabreed has stabilised and has enough funds to fund its capital expenditure.
He added: About 47 per cent of Tabreeds revenue comes from government-related contracts. Optically, the stock looks cheap but, it will take time for investors to regain confidence in their business model and return to the stock.
Sujit S. Parhar, Tabreeds chief executive officer, said that continued cost control and improved organisational efficiencies had helped cut operating costs 25 per cent while boosting operating profit 14 per cent compared to the same period last year.
Financing costs
Net finance costs were notably lower, reflecting our stable and improved capital structure, Parhar added.
He said a 12 per cent increase in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation reflected the strong cash generation the business is capable of.
Tabreed has 59 plants in the UAE with a number of additional projects in Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Founded in 1998, and listed on the Dubai Financial Market, Tabreeds cooling infrastructure is an integral part of the regions growth, providing innovative cooling solutions to residential, commercial and government customers.
Tabreeds stock ended 0.78 per cent higher at Dh1.30 yesterday on a bearish DFM where the general index fell for a fifth consecutive session on global economic slowdown fears.
By Himendra Mohan Kumar, Staff Reporter
Gulf News 2012. All rights reserved.
