euro adhoc: Financial Figures/Balance Sheet
centrotherm photovoltaics:
preliminary figures confirm positive business trend in 2008
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Company Information
19.02.2009
- Revenue up from EUR 166 million to around EUR 375 million (+ 126 percent) - EBIT (excluding purchase price allocation) more than doubled to around EUR 56 million (+ 165 percent)
- Order backlog as of December 31, 2008: EUR 990 million - New orders won during first weeks 2009 - Strong revenue growth from EUR 500 million to EUR 550 million budgeted for 2009
Blaubeuren, February 19, 2009 - centrotherm photovoltaics AG, Blaubeuren, continued its successful growth path in the 2008 financial year. The revenue of the technology and service provider for the production of solar silicon and solar cells more than doubled last year to around EUR 375 million (previous year: EUR 166 million). Operating earnings (EBIT) also more than doubled. Excluding effects for the purchase prices paid for acquisitions, earnings before interest and tax rose to EUR 56 million. Including these effects, EBIT amounted to around EUR 44 million (previous year: EUR 21 million). EBITDA margin* increased to around 15.4 percent (previous year: 12.9 percent). Excluding acquisition effects (purchase price allocation), the EBIT margin* amounted prospectively to 14.9 percent (previous year: 12.7 percent), and to around 11.7 percent including these effects.
Despite the global financial crisis, centrotherm photovoltaics reported revenue of around EUR 138 million in the fourth quarter of 2008 (previous year: EUR 75 million). The order intake amounted to around EUR 123 million (previous year: EUR 211 million). The order backlog totaled EUR 990 million as of December 31, 2008, of which around 20 percent is already being processed. Approximately 60 percent of the orders will be realized in 2009, and are consequently effective in terms of revenue and earnings in the current financial year.
Of the order book, EUR 445 million was attributable to the solar cell business area, and EUR 496 million to the silicon area. Orders totaling EUR 49 million were attributable to the thin-film area. Orders in the turnkey category amounted to around 33 percent of the order backlog. Of the total, 67 percent related to specialty and individual items of equipment from all three business areas.
The company assumes it will achieve significantly double-digit growth in 2009, and anticipates revenue of EUR 500 million to EUR 550 million despite the difficult market environment. Strong liquidity of currently EUR around 162 million is a solid base that centrotherm photovoltaics is able to finance this growth from its own resources.
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Already in the first weeks of 2009, centrotherm photovoltaics has received further major orders with a volume of around EUR 320 million from Asia and Europe. The customers include, among others, a silicon producer, an electronics group and a project development company active in the renewable energies area. These customers have ordered individual items of equipment for silicon manufacturing and turnkey lines for the production of solar cells and thin-film modules.
"We are pleased to report no major order cancellations despite the global financial crisis and its effects, as well as having achieved significant growth in revenue and earnings," commented Oliver M. Albrecht, CFO of centrotherm photovoltaics. With the aim of identifying and realizing efficiency-enhancement and cost-reduction potentials across the Group we have launched our "Performance Plus - Program" in the fourth quarter 2008. As part of this, research and development work to secure the company's position of technological leadership is being intensified. Robert Hartung, CEO, went on to add: "Our figures confirm our strategy and our strong commitment to helping our customers cutting its production costs. Robert Hartung commented further: "Thanks to our strong market position we will continue to grow even in turbulent economic environment."
The above figures are still subject to a final audit by the company's auditor. The finalized figures and 2008 annual report will be published on March 31, 2009.
*All margins refer to sales
About centrotherm photovoltaics AG centrotherm photovoltaics AG, which is based at Blaubeuren, is one of the world's leading technology and service-providers for the manufacturing of solar cells and solar silicon. The broad product spectrum comprises key equipment and turnkey production lines for crystalline and thin-film solar cells. The product range is supplemented by reactors and converters for the manufacturing of solar silicon. centrotherm photovoltaics guarantees its customers important performance parameters such as production capacity, degree of efficacy, and completion deadlines for turnkey lines. The company employs over 1,000 members of staff and operates globally in Europe, Asia, and the USA. In the 2007 financial year centrotherm photovoltaics achieved revenue of EUR 166.2 million, EBIT of EUR 21.1 million, and is listed in the TecDax of the Frankfurt Securities Exchange.
end of announcement euro adhoc
Further inquiry note:
Company contact:
Saskia Schultz-Ebert
Senior Manager Investor Relations
Tel: +49 7344 918-8890
E-mail: saskia.schultz-ebert@centrotherm.de
Press contact:
Christina Siebels, Grit Pauli
HOSCHKE & CONSORTEN Public Relations GmbH
Tel: +49 40 3690 50-58 /-31
E-mail: c.siebels@hoschke.de; g.pauli@hoschke.de
Branche: Energy
ISIN: DE000A0JMMN2
WKN: A0JMMN
Börsen: Börse Frankfurt / regulated dealing/prime standard