TIDMNGR
RNS Number : 3612W
Nature Group PLC
31 July 2018
NATURE GROUP PLC
("Nature Group" or the "Company")
Posting of Annual Reports & Accounts
Nature Group PLC (the "Group") (AIM:NGR), the provider of port
reception facilities and waste treatment solutions for the oil,
marine and process industries, confirms that it has posted its
Report and Accounts for the twelve months ended 31 December 2017
(the "Annual Report") to shareholders. The Annual Report can be
downloaded from, Nature's website: www.ngrp.com.
Printed copies of the Annual Report can also be requested.
The adjourned Annual General Meeting in relation to Resolution 1
(to receive and consider the report of directors and the financial
statements of teh Company) will be held at Nature Group,
Torontostraat 20, 3197KN Rotterdam-Botlek, The Netherlands at 5pm
CET on Tuesday 31st of July.
For further information:
Nature Group PLC
Andreas Drenthen, CEO Tel: + 31 653261484
Berend van Straten, Chairman Tel: + 31 626805605
Cenkos Securities plc
Neil McDonald Tel: +44 (0)131 220 9771 / +44 (0)207 397 1953
Beth McKiernan Tel: +44 (0)131 220 9778 / +44 (0)207 397 1950
Pete Lynch Tel: +44 (0)131 220 9772
Nature Group is traded on the AIM market, (ticker: NGR).
www.ngrp.com
Final Results for the Year ended 31 December 2017
Nature Group, (AIM: NGR), the provider of port reception
facilities and waste treatment solutions for the oil, marine and
process industries, announces its results for the year ended 31
December 2017.
2017 Financial Performance from Continuing Operations*
-- Revenues decreased by 15% to GBP10.1 (2016: GBP11.9m)
-- Underlying loss before tax decreased to -GBP1.9 (2016: -GBP2.5m)
-- Underlying earnings per share ("EPS") of -2.6p (2016: -2.8p)
-- Year-end cash balances increased by GBP0.04m
Chairman's statement
The year 2017 was supposed to be the turn-around year for
Nature. Overhead costs had been reduced and the Company was well
positioned with maritime operations in Rotterdam and Houston and
Oil & Gas activities in both Aberdeen and Stavanger.
Unfortunately, the cash generated from the sale of our Gibraltar
assets in January was insufficient to provide funds to invest in
growth and cost saving opportunities. To this was added delays in
securing new contracts in the Oil and Gas business, particularly in
the UK sector in the North Sea, and delay in shutting down our
operations in Portugal. The combination of these events resulted in
significant losses in the first half of 2017 and meant we failed to
deliver on the Board's promise to return to profitability in 2017.
The Board could not ignore the consequences of this, as part of a
determined drive to reduce overheads, the CEO and CFO left the
Group in July, the Amsterdam office was closed and the Oil &
Gas Division was identified for divestment.
Andreas Drenthen was re-instated as CEO and Rene Verbruggen
joined the board and brought a wealth of experience and focus.
Andreas Drenthen's revived attention to the Rotterdam operations
yielded further improvements in profitability - more revenue was
made in Rotterdam in the last 3 Months of the year than in the
previous 9 Months.
The decision to sell the Oil and Gas operations was a difficult
decision as the Group over the years had invested significant funds
in the business and had built a reputation for superior technology
and operational excellence. Negotiations have been entered into
with a prospective purchaser but at this point it would be
premature to indicate when a sale will be completed. Should the
sale of the division not be completed soon, the Board is
considering closing down the Stavanger and Aberdeen operations and
selling the assets of the division to interested prospective
buyers.
The Maritime operations in Rotterdam are showing continued
strong performance in the first 6 Months of 2018 and it is expected
that this trend will continue. Our operations in Houston are
picking up and through the cooperation with Ramky it is expected
that the road to profitability should be reached in 2019. In Oman,
plans are being made to build a waste water treatment facility in
the port of Sohar.
The need to match our overhead with a reduced base of business
operations is forcing us to look very carefully at how we can
mitigate some of the costs associated with being an AIM listed
Company without losing the benefits. Looking forward the Board is
therefore considering to de-list the Company as soon as the sale of
the Oil & Gas division has been completed. Following this, the
Board is considering to sell the remaining components if a market
conform price can be achieved. This, and the release of the funds
that are being kept in escrow in 2019, may maximize shareholder
value, which will be paid out as dividend to our respective
shareholders.
The Board would like to express their appreciation to the Nature
employees and its affiliates for their commitment and loyalty
during these uncertain times. Our employees have been working with
the Board to make the necessary changes in our goal to restore the
profitability of the Group. I want to thank our many shareholders
for their patience, perseverance and trust during the difficult
times we have had. We look forward to maximizing shareholder value
during the remaining Months of this year.
Berend van Straten
Chairman of the Board
31 July 2017
Executive directors' statement
2017 has been another challenging year for the Nature Group. The
continuing downturn in the Oil & Gas sector had a significant
impact on our Divisional and Group financial performance. Within
our Oil & Gas Division the number of offshore operations and
projects declined as many offshore drilling operations were
cancelled. This slowdown also had a knock on effect on the maritime
operations in Houston which suffered from the revenue segment
derived from offshore supply vessels operating in the Gulf.
The proceeds from the sale of our redundant site in Gibraltar at
the beginning of 2017 was very welcome although this still did not
give the Group the headroom it needed to adequately finance its
operations. Frustratingly, a residual value of GBP694,500 is held
in escrow until the beginning of 2019.
The board made the decision to generate additional funds from
the identification of selective divestments. Nature's partner in
the Middle East, Ramky, was looking to expand its activities in the
USA. Having identified our Houston operation as fitting their
objectives this led to Ramky acquiring a 50% shareholding in the
second half of 2017.
The overall loss in revenues was significant, and although there
are some signs of recovery in the oil price, this hasn't resulted
in more drilling operations until the second quarter of 2018 and as
such the outlook remains poor. The maritime operation in Houston is
showing signs of revival, as the team has done an outstanding job
by getting more maritime contracts than ever before. Volumes are
rising and outlook for the coming year is promising. In Rotterdam
volumes of vessel-and cargo-related liquid waste were stable. In
2017 we started collecting Annex V waste (solid/galley waste), as a
new service to our customers, as there was only one company
servicing the Rotterdam port. We started collecting with one barge
and have managed to get more and more contracts to collect Annex V
waste and in 2018 will start using a second, chartered, barge.
Despite the start-up costs we managed to break-even this new
service in 2017 and foresee a further growth and contribution to
the bottom-line in 2018.
The operational and management changes we have made in the
Maritime Division, particularly in Rotterdam, are looking
encouraging and giving us optimism for the future of these
activities. As a service based operation for waste management we
see a more stable and predictable revenue flow for this business.
This contrasts with the volatility we see in the contracting model
for Oil and Gas revenues. As the Group cannot sustain the continued
losses in this sector the division needs to be divested at the
earliest opportunity. Once this divestment has succeeded there only
remains one operation in Rotterdam, next to the 50% shareholding in
the Houston operation and further strategic options need to be
taken.
Andreas Drenthen
CEO
31 July 2017
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
Year ended 31 December 2017
Notes Audited Audited
year to year to
2017 2016 restated
(see note
GBP 1)
Continuing operations GBP
Revenue 1,4 10,127,196 11,990,529
Cost of sales (7,283,070) (7,332,730)
============ ===============
Operating profit 2,844,126 4,657,799
Other income/(expense) - (203,961)
Share based payments 15 66,382 3,699
Administrative costs 24 (3,925,274) (5,814,627)
Depreciation and amortisation (512,362) (1,141,913)
Finance costs (109,090) (35,650)
Share of net (loss)/profit of associates
and joint ventures accounted for using
the equity method (263,197) -
============ ===============
Loss before taxation 2 (1,899,415) (2,534,653)
Income tax (expense)/gain 3 (164,037) 285,013
============ ===============
Loss for the year from continuing operations (2,063,452) (2,249,640)
============ ===============
Discontinued operations
Loss after tax for the year from discontinued
operations 17 (1,289,722) (1,345,163)
============ ===============
Loss for the year (3,353,174) (3,594,803)
============ ===============
Attributable to:
Equity holders of the parent:
Loss for the year from continuing
operations (2,063,452) (2,202,273)
Loss for the year from discontinued
operations (1,231,170) (1,212,976)
============ ===============
Loss for the year attributable to
equity holders of the parent (3,294,622) (3,415,249)
Non-controlling interest:
Loss for the year from continuing
operations - (47,367)
Loss for the year from discontinued
operations (58,552) (132,187)
============ ===============
Loss for the period attributable to
owners of non-controlling
interest (58,552) (179,554)
============ ===============
Loss for the year (3,353,174) (3,594,803)
============ ===============
Other comprehensive income
Other comprehensive income to be reclassified
to profit or loss in subsequent periods
(net of tax):
Exchange differences on translation
of foreign operations 217,539 1,231,875
Total comprehensive loss for the year,
net of tax (3,135,635) (2,362,928)
============ ===============
Attributable to:
Equity holders of the parent (3,077,083) (2,183,374)
Non-controlling interest (58,552) (179,554)
============ ===============
(3,135,635) (2,362,928)
============ ===============
Earnings per share (pence)
From continuing operations:
Basic 16 (2.603) (2.778)
From discontinued operations:
Basic 16 (1.553) (1.530)
Loss after tax, before share based
payments (3,361,004) (3,418,948)
Continued operations excluding share
based payments 16 (2.603) (2.778)
================================================ ====== ============ ===============
The notes on pages 18 to 45 are an integral part of these
consolidated financial statements.
Consolidated balance sheet
At 31 December 2017
Notes Audited Audited
as at as at
2017 2016 restated
(see note
1)
Assets GBP GBP
Non-current assets
Plant, vessels and equipment 5 4,262,394 8,341,330
Goodwill 6 - 1,238,137
Other intangible assets 6 17,113 17,680
Investment in associated company 7 940,136 308,446
Deferred tax assets 3 - 478,508
Long term receivables 8 1,287,488 -
============= ===============
Total non-current assets 6,507,131 10,384,101
============= ===============
Current assets
Insurance recoveries on 3(rd) party
claims 20 1,651,572 1,593,352
Corporate taxes - 86,978
Stocks and work in progress 10,655 79,234
Trade and other receivables 10 2,205,859 3,369,337
Cash and cash equivalents 19 314,569 383,642
============= ===============
4,182,655 5,512,543
Assets classified as held for sale 4,18 1,411,044 6,387,737
============= ===============
Total assets 12,100,830 22,284,381
============= ===============
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables 11 (1,386,159) (6,678,378)
Corporate taxes (23,975) -
Bank loans and overdrafts 12,19 (777,617) (1,186,456)
Provision for 3(rd) party claims 20 (1,651,572) (1,593,352)
============= ===============
(3,839,323) (9,458,186)
Liabilities directly associated with
assets classified as held for sale 4,18 (2,981,863) (5,608,227)
============= ===============
(6,821,186) (15,066,413)
Non-current liabilities
Deferred tax liability 3 (361,080) (386,907)
Provisions 20 (333,556) -
Term loans 13 (1,847,274) (1,220,277)
============= ===============
(2,541,910) (1,607,184)
============= ===============
Net assets 2,737,734 5,610,784
============= ===============
Equity
Called up share capital 14 158,561 158,561
Share premium account 14 21,953,617 21,953,617
Share option reserve 15 40,665 107,047
Capital reserve 2,866,130 2,866,130
Foreign currency translation reserve 431,566 214,027
Profit and loss account (22,712,805) (19,418,183)
============= ===============
2,737,734 5,881,199
Amounts recognised directly in equity - -
relating to assets classified as held
for sale
============= ===============
Equity attributable to owners of the
Group 2,737,734 5,881,199
Non-controlling interest 9 - (270,415)
============= ===============
Total equity attributable to equity
shareholders 2,737,734 5,610,784
============= ===============
Approved by the Board on 31 July 2018
Consolidated cash flow statement
Year ended 31 December 2017
Audited
year to
2016 restated
Audited year (see note
to 2017 1)
Reconciliation of operating profit to
net cash flow from operating activities GBP GBP
Loss for the year before taxation (2,800,715) (3,891,015)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation and amortisation 943,843 1,150,457
Decrease in stock 76,766 -
Decrease in debtors 1,594,600 1,798,041
(Decrease)/increase in creditors (2,642,963) 1,657,936
Foreign exchange differences 387,642 1,200,254
Decrease in reserves due to share based
payments - (3,699)
Impairment of fixed assets 1,693,263 120,066
Other non-cash movements (512,919) -
============================================== ============= ===============
Net cash flow from operating activities (1,260,483) 2,032,040
Investing activities:
Acquisition of tangible assets (374,218) (2,017,372)
Disposal of tangible assets 2,483,050 48,456
Acquisition of intangible assets - (166,478)
Disposal of intangible assets 1,121,034
Financing activities:
Repayments of (bank) borrowings (1,931,495) (336,884)
Proceeds from investments by non-controlling
interest - -
============================================== ============= ===============
Increase / (Decrease) in cash balances 37,888 (440,238)
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
during the year:
Balance at start of year (693,649) (253,411)
Effect of exchange differences opening
balance cash and cash equivalents (23,715)
Increase/(Decrease) in cash and cash
equivalents 37,888 (440,238)
============================================== ============= ===============
Balance at end of year (679,476) (693,649)
============================================== ============= ===============
The notes on pages 18 to 45 are an integral part of these
consolidated financial statements.
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END
FR FKDDBQBKDFON
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July 31, 2018 10:37 ET (14:37 GMT)
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