29 Sep 2009 15:27

NCSP

MOSCOW. Sept 29 (Interfax) - OJSC Novorossiisk Commercial Seaport's (NCSP) IFRS net profit for the first half fo 2009 came to $128.9 million, which was a year-on-year increase of 52.5%, the company said in a statement.

The port's revenue increased by 6.2% to $334 million while operational costs fell from $179 million to $102.8 million.

Excluding minority stakes, net profit for the port came to $125.9 million against $78.7 million a year previous.

The port's net cash flow form operations increased from $81.8 million (in the first half of 2008) to $208.2 million.

Net debt shrank by 50.5% to $187.3 million from $378.7 million. The group's debt on loans and other borrowing came to $462.7 million as of June 30.

The company said that its consolidated revenue had been driven by several factors. The most important was changes in the volume and structure of the port's cargo handling. For instance, total grain handling increased fourfold, as did handling of iron ore concentrate. Secondly, an additional $3.5 million was received from the provision of additional port services, including cargo storage.

Operational costs in the first half of the year dropped through reductions in purchases for fuel for the group's refueling base. The reductions in costs came to 30.6%. In addition, the group posted a decrease in total amortization. The drop of operational costs in dollar equivalent was driven by the ruble's performance against the U.S. currency, the company said.

The NCSP's cargo handling in the first half of 2009 increased by 10.4% year-on-year to 43.3 million tonnes.

NCSP Group is a major Russian port operator. The company's shares are traded on the RTS Index and the MICEX Stock Exchange, as well as the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in GDRs.

NCSP's cargo turnover in 2008 came to 81.6 million tonnes while consolidated IFRS revenue totaled $653.7 million.

The NCSP Group unites the following companies: OJSC NCSP, OJSC Novorossiisk Grain Terminal, OJSC Novorossiisk Ship Repair Plant, OJSC Fleet NCSP, OJSC Novoroslesexport and OJSC IPP.

The beneficiaries of the controlling packet in NCSP are the family of the port's board chairman, Alexander Ponomarenko, and State Duma Deputy Alexander Skorobogatko.