Dutch Vopak Q1 operating profit rises 15%

21 April 2009 07:10  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Dutch logistics company Vopak reported on Tuesday a 15% increase in its first quarter operating profits to €91.2m ($118.4m) from the same period last year, helped by strong commercial occupancy rates at its storage terminals.

Earnings before interests, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the three-month period were up 10% at €115.6m.

“Although, as expected, chemicals activities in our European division continued to see some decrease in throughput, resulting in a lower operating profit, the commercial occupancy rate remained strong,” Vopak chairman John Paul Broeders said in a statement.

The company’s chemicals business in Europe, Middle East and Africa registered a 23% year-on-year decline in operating profits in the January-to-March period to €17.7m.

“All our other divisions across the world showed healthy operating profit increases supported by fairly stable occupancy rates in the first quarter of 2009,” Broeders said.

Vopak reconfirmed its forecast of hitting at least €450m EBITDA for the whole of 2009.

($1 = €0.77)

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