The TTS Group’s Q4 EBITDA adjusted for one-time items was MNOK 36.1, an improvement of MNOK 146.1 compared to Q4 2013 and contributing to a full year operating profit of MNOK 4.2. “We are heading to ensure acceptable long-term profitability, and these figures reaffirm our faith in the ongoing restructuring and in our recent market initiatives,” says Björn Andersson, CEO of TTS Group ASA, the company said in its press release.
The Q4 operating result before depreciation (EBITDA) was MNOK 141.8. Adjusted for the one-time effect of pension plan changes in the Norwegian entities, the operating profit still improves strongly, leaping from a loss of MNOK 110 in Q4 2013 to a profit of MNOK 36.1. Preliminary full year EBITDA excl. pension adjustments increased from a loss of MNOK 130.3 in 2013 to a profit of MNOK 4.2.
“The positive development is mainly attributable to our continuous work on improving internal processes, cutting cost and adjusting activities to current market conditions within segments experiencing low tides,” says Andersson, and points to a decrease of about MNOK 70 each for both indirect overhead cost and material cost.
“2014 saw an all-time high for our service operations and a continued strong performance in the market for RoRo and Cruise. These achievements were regrettably offset by restructuring costs and by a poor performance within Offshore. In addition we now also see that several loss-generating projects that have weighed down the accounts for quarters, are close to reaching their end,” says Andersson.
Q4 revenues increased from MNOK 638 in 2013 to MNOK 734 in 2014. Full year turnover decreased from MNOK 2,693 in 2013 to MNOK 2,435 in 2014. The reduction was expected and primarily attributable to lower activity in the Container / Bulk / Tank and Multipurpose / General Cargo units. However, the Q4 order intake of MNOK 498 relates mainly to large orders in these two units, so there are signs that these segments are picking up. The Group order backlog per year-end 2014 amounts to MNOK 3,627 compared to MNOK 2,971 at the end of 2013. An impressive new order intake in TTS’s joint ventures in China, where market growth is considerable, is the main explanation for the increased order backlog. The figures includes 50% of the order backlog related to Chinese joint-ventures.