Vienna, 28 August 2015 – Despite a challenging economic backdrop and a later start to the construction season because of the weather, PORR increased its production output in the first half of 2015. At 30 June 2015 output totalled EUR 1,497m, which was EUR 8m or 0.5% more than the level of the previous year. This was a renewed testament to the focus on the home markets, where PORR generated around 86% of production output: broken down by country, Austria remained PORR’s largest market by some margin, followed by Germany, Poland, Switzerland and the Czech Republic. The positive performance of output was also reflected in earnings: despite a significant rise in amortisation, depreciation and impairment expense, EBIT improved in the first half year to EUR 21.5m and was therefore 70.8% above the comparable value. Net financial income also increased, leading to a rise in EBT from EUR 1,0m in the first half of 2014 to EUR 17.1m in the period under review. In line with this, the interim profit for the period doubled from EUR 5.1m to EUR 10.8m.
“Our market leadership in Austria and good positioning in our home markets of Germany, Switzerland, Poland and the Czech Republic have once again secured us very solid results. PORR continued its successful course in the first half of 2015 and today stands as a trailblazer in many areas of the Austrian construction industry – particularly as regards innovations and new technology. The takeover of Bilfinger Infrastructure S.A. has also allowed us to consolidate our position in Poland and with the Bilfinger subsidiary in Norway we have gained access to a new, highly attractive market”, said Karl-Heinz Strauss, CEO of PORR AG.
Strong growth in order bookings and order backlog
In the reporting period PORR managed to achieve a significant improvement in both the order backlog and order bookings – even surpassing the previous record high in 2013 from the one-off impact of the Doha metro. At 30 June 2015 the order backlog reached EUR 4,830m – a hike of 6.9%. Order bookings rocketed to EUR 2,269m and were thereby 41.0% above the previous year’s value. This growth means that PORR is not only ideally positioned for the current business year, but also for the years ahead.
“The cushion of orders is currently around 40% more than annual production output and thereby represents exceptional basic capacity utilisation for the coming years. What’s more, the pleasing order books allow us to evaluate and acquire new projects with a clear eye on the margins”, said Karl-Heinz Strauss.
The largest new orders in the reporting period included the Europaallee office complex for the Swiss federal railways at Zurich station, the major Bavaria Towers office project in Munich, the Freiburg residential and hotel project and the Dufourstraße apartment complex in Zurich. In infrastructure construction it was possible to acquire the two Swiss tunnels, Ceneri and Albula, with the Prokocim hospital in Krakow and the Marriott Okecie hotel acquired in Warsaw. In building construction in Austria PORR acquired the Pfarrwiesengasse 23 apartment building and the UBM project QBC 5 in Vienna as well as the Weiz state school centre.
Consolidating the market position in Poland
In order to consolidate this excellent position and sensibly complement the Group’s own capacities, PORR has acquired Bilfinger Infrastructure S.A., one of the leading civil engineering companies in the third-largest home market of Poland. This has enabled the company to achieve full, permanent coverage in the civil engineering business in Poland and to fully benefit from the construction boom and EU financing in the coming years. Furthermore, the Bilfinger branch in Norway opens up a new, highly attractive market, in which PORR will concentrate on its core competencies in bridge, road and tunnel construction.
Positive outlook for 2015
The forecast for the full year 2015 remains positive. The slight decrease in output in the first quarter of 2015 due to later start to the construction season has been compensated in the second quarter. On the basis of the significant growth in orders – with an all-time high in the order backlog and hike in order bookings – the Executive Board forecasts a renewed increase in earnings for the full year 2015.
The Half-Yearly Report 2015 is available for download here: Investor Relations