Saipem closed the first nine months of 2013 with a loss of 474 million, against the net profit of 724 million recorded in the same period of 2012. Revenues amounted to 8.708 million euros (-12,4%), while the Ebit closed down by 259 million euros. Technical investments reached 684 million euros (against 778 in the same period of 2012). Despite the negative numbers, the Saipem stock closed in a rally in Piazza Affari, gaining almost 5 percentage points, the best increase of the Ftse Mib.
In the nine months, new orders were acquired for 8.561 million euros (9.140 million in the same period of 2012). After the end of the quarter, new orders were acquired for approximately 1.250 million euros including the contract for the preliminary construction works of South Stream. The accounts for the third quarter improved with revenues of 3.522 million euros (-0,8%), an Ebit of 209 million euros (-48,3%) and a net result of 101 million euros (-59,6, XNUMX%).
“Saipem recorded a return to positive results in the third quarter – commented the CEO Umebrto Vergine -. I am satisfied that our efforts to improve operational performance are also bringing results in the commercial relationship with our customers. Through the new contracts won since January 2013 we are rebuilding a portfolio with higher margins and we continue to see positive market prospects although the timing of acquiring new orders remains uncertain in some cases”.
A balanced Ebit and a net loss of around 300-350 million euros. The level of investments at the end of the year is expected to be around one billion euro, while net financial debt is between around 5 and 5,2 billion euro.
“The increased complexity and onerousness of new projects – explains the company – leads to a lengthening of the times in the assignment of contracts by the oil companies and a reduced visibility on the possible evolution of the contractors' order portfolio. For Saipem this causes some difficulties in achieving the annual target of new acquisitions in the E&C business unit. The delays in the new contracts together with a slight postponement of the scheduled activities lead to a slight decrease in the level of revenues forecasted for the current year”.
“The short-term reference market framework remains positive and Saipem maintains a solid competitive positioning. The timing of the new contract awards in the coming months will determine the speed of the recovery for 2014 and in the medium term. The market continues to present excellent opportunities in terms of quantity and type of new projects.
