44
TREAD CAREFULLY RESULTS • VOPAK HAS MANAGED TO NAVIGATE THE COVID-19 CRISIS WITHOUT ANY GREAT IMPACT ON ITS FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE, AND IS LAYING PLANS FOR GROWTH VOPAK HAS REPORTED a decline in its first-half financial figures, with revenues down 8 per cent compared to first-half 2019 at €589.3m and adjusted EBITDA down 5 per cent at €402.6m. Operating profit fell 6 per cent to €256.8m and net income dropped 4 per cent to €166.1m. However, adjusted for currency movements and the divestment of three terminals in Europe last year, Vopak calculates that EBITDA improved by 4 per cent, reflecting resilient business performance including the effect of contango oil markets, IMO 2020 converted capacity and reduced chemicals throughput.
Divestments resulted in a 17 per cent fall in revenues in Vopak’s Europe and Africa division, and revenues were also down by 8 per cent in the Asia and Middle East division, as a result of lower revenues from chemical terminals and out-of-service capacity in Singapore, which was partly offset by improved performance of its oil terminals as a result of the contango and IMO converted capacity. Performance in China and North Asia was flat on first half 2019, though the Americas division delivered a 7 per cent increase in revenues following the commissioning of new capacity in Mexico, Brazil and Panama.
“In the first half of 2020, we delivered good financial performance in a more volatile business environment,” says CEO Eelco Hoekstra. “We captured opportunities in our oil storage portfolio, resulting in improved occupancy rates. At the same time, we experienced reduced throughput for chemicals, in particular in Houston and Singapore. “We initiated a further response in cost management to protect earnings. Relative to our original plan, we missed some contributions due to delays in growth projects and out of service capacity as construction work was restricted in the second quarter. The value of these growth projects are not affected,” Hoekstra adds. RESPONSE TO THE VIRUS Vopak’s figures include a second quarter that covers the main period of the Covid-19 pandemic thus far. Its results actually show an improvement in profitability in the second quarter compared to the first, with net profit (including exceptional items) rising from €81.0m to €116.4m and overall capacity utilisation up from 84 per cent to 88 per cent. Referring specifically to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, Vopak says: “Our main focus is on the health of the people working for our company in all locations and to limit the spread of the Coronavirus, to manage the impact on our business and to assess the impact on the economy and society. Therefore, we have put global and local measures into place to protect our employees, their families and our operations based on information provided by the World Health Organisation, national and local health authorities. To date, we have observed a limited impact on our operations. All our 66 terminals are operational and there have been no significant disruptions to business continuity.” Eelco Hoekstra adds: “I am proud of all people working for Vopak and appreciate their extraordinary efforts and commitment to safely serve our customers and society by storing vital products with care during the Covid-19 pandemic. We remain focused on ensuring the health, safety and well-being of our employees and to keep our company performing well.”
HCB MONTHLY | SEPTEMBER 2020
