Soil Researcher Fugro again suffer substantial loss – NU.nl

The Leyden Damme company saw sales based on constant exchange rates by more than a sixth calving to 2.36 billion euros, although this was also due to the sale of assets.

The net loss amounted to 373 million euro, compared with 459 million euros in 2014. the deficit is partly due to depreciation totaling 322 million euros, due to the poor market conditions. This concerns in particular the division that maps the ocean floor on behalf of oil companies

Decline

“We are dealing with an unprecedented downturn in our largest market. Oil and gas services, ” said CEO Paul van Riel. By reducing capacity, cut costs and divest non-strategic activities is still achieved a positive cash flow and significantly reduced debt, he stressed.

For 2016 Fugro again assumes a positive cash flow. Costs must be reduced further because the energy market, accounting for nearly three-quarters of sales, no signs of improvement shows. However, the company sees growth opportunities in preparatory work for the construction of wind farms for example.

Last year Fugro has deleted 1,600 jobs, twice as many as previously planned, and the

offshore fleet considerably reduced. Van Riel said in a note leaving already been taken into account a continued weak market in 2016. ” That is why we hope to have cut more slowly in 2016 than in 2015, ” he said.

Worklist

Fugro has an order book of 1.32 billion euros for this year. That is, except for foreign exchange, about 15 percent less than last year. That does not mean that sales will fall just as strong, said Van Riel, but that further pressure coming is according to him the hand.

The CEO sees the continuing slump no reason rapprochement to search for Boskalis shareholder, which holds a quarter of the shares. He reiterated that he, unlike his colleague Peter Berdowski the Papendrechtse dredging and maritime services provider, sees no strategic advantages in cooperation

By:. ANP