Impairment, restructuring charges keep NOL in red in Q2
Vessel value writedowns and restructuring costs kept Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) in the red for the second quarter of the year, Seatrade Asia online reports.
NOL reported an operating profit of $16m for the second quarter of the year, but was dragged into a $118m net loss due to an $82m impairment charge on the values of vessels it plans to sell, and $29m in restructuring costs.
For the first half of the year the line reported a net loss of $371m, compared to a $67m loss in the same period a year earlier. Revenues were up 3% at $4.71bn.
The company has sold five older vessels and plans to sell five more as newbuildings start to flow into its fleet.
“The one-time charges were difficult but necessary,” said Ng Yat Chung, NOL ceo. “We need a more efficient organization and a more modern, cost-competitive fleet to deal with the oversupply situation in the container shipping industry.”