Irish Continental Trading Update
July 28 2020 - 2:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMICGC
IRISH CONTINENTAL GROUP ("ICG" or the Group)
Volumes (Year to date, 25 July 2020)
2020 2019 Change
Cars 68,900 209,900 -67.2%
RoRo Freight 173,500 175,400 -1.1%
Container Freight (teu) 178,300 199,200 -10.5%
Terminal Lifts 160,100 185,300 -13.6%
Volumes (Half Year 30 June 2020)
2020 2019 Change
Cars 56,600 161,200 -65.0%
RoRo Freight 149,400 153,600 -2.7%
Container Freight (teu) 155,700 176,300 -11.7%
Terminal Lifts 141,000 163,100 -13.5%
ICG issues this trading update which covers carryings for the year to
date to 25 July 2020 and carrying and financial information for the
first six months of 2020, i.e. 1 January to 30 June with comparisons
against the corresponding period in 2019. All figures are unaudited.
Consolidated Group revenue in the period to 30 June 2020 was EUR130.8
million, a decrease of 21.6% compared with last year. Net debt at the
end of June was EUR103.3 million (EUR71.8 million pre IFRS16) million
compared with EUR129.0 million (EUR93.5 million pre IFRS16) at 31
December 2019.
Ferries Division
Total revenues recorded in the period to 30 June amounted to EUR61.6
million (including intra-division charter income), a 33.3% decrease on
the prior year. The decrease was principally due to lower passenger
volumes resulting from the travel restrictions introduced across the EU
due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
For the year to 25 July, Irish Ferries carried 68,900 cars, a decrease
of 67.2% on the previous year. Freight carryings were 173,500 RoRo units,
a decrease of 1.1% compared with 2019.
Container and Terminal Division
Total revenues recorded in the period to 30 June amounted to EUR73.2
million, a 6.6% decrease on the prior year. This decrease is principally
related to supply chain disruption due to the effects of Covid-19.
For the year to 25 July container freight volumes shipped were down
10.5% on the previous year at 178,300 teu (twenty-foot equivalent
units). Units handled at our terminals in Dublin and Belfast decreased
13.6% year on year to 160,100 lifts.
Group Development
The key challenge for ICG during the Covid-19 pandemic has been
maintaining our shipping schedules which are critical to the supply
chain on and off the Island of Ireland. These services have provided a
vital lifeline service to our Island and beyond for food,
pharmaceuticals, medical supplies and in more recent times a high level
of e-commerce goods. In the absence of airline capacity, we have also
offered a vital lifeline service for essential passenger travel,
including returning medical and caring volunteers and technicians to fix
vital equipment in our hospitals and care centres. We have also provided
an ability for our citizens to repatriate, where they must do so, to
deal with emergencies at home. While we have been successful in meeting
this challenge, the continuation of travel restrictions throughout our
peak summer season has had a material impact on our passenger carryings
on ICG's Irish Ferries services. We have raised our concerns with the
Irish Government on the current policy of asking people from Britain who
visit Ireland to self-isolate for two weeks, while allowing unrestricted
transit via Northern Ireland. We believe this is clearly anomalous and
puts the retention of the Common Travel Area between Ireland and Britain
at risk.
Irish Ferries subsidiary Dublin Ferryport Terminal (DFT), was successful
in the public tender to operate a new Container Depot at the new Dublin
Inland Port. DFT has signed an agreement to enter into a 20-year lease
for this operation on completion of certain civil works by the landlord.
These works are expected to commence in August, with the facility
becoming operational during 2021. This facility will be used for the
remote storage, maintenance and upgrade of empty container boxes,
releasing valuable capacity for the handling of containers in the port
area. The Dublin Inland Port will be located adjacent to Dublin Airport
with direct access to the M50 Motorway (Dublin Ring Road) and the Port
Tunnel.
We would again like to take this opportunity to thank the crews on our
ships, our terminal and office staff, our passengers who have travelled
for essential reasons, our freight customers and their drivers who
continue to work in these very difficult circumstances.
The Group is in a strong financial position to weather this Covid-19
storm and we would refer investors to our cash and undrawn credit
facilities position at 31 December 2019.
Dublin.
28 July 2020
Enquiries
Eamonn Rothwell, CEO, +353 1 607 5628
David Ledwidge, CFO, +353 1 607 5628
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 28, 2020 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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