Rickmers Group posts Interim Report H1 2014
The ongoing pressure on the shipping market impacted all three business segments of Rickmers Group, the company said in its press release. In the first six months of 2014 consolidated Group revenues amounted to 271.7 million Euros and thus decreased by 5.9 per cent compared to the corresponding period 2013. Although consolidated EBITDA regressed to 101.5 million Euros, the Group’s EBT remained positive with 1.1 million Euros. Rickmers Group’s half-year financial statements 2014 were prepared in accordance with IAS 34 for the first time.
Rickmers Group again sourced debt capital with two major transactions in 2014. In March 2014, Rickmers Holding, parent of the Rickmers Group of shipping companies, successfully increased its Corporate Bond listed in the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by 25 million Euros up to a volume of 250 million Euros in total. In May 2014, Rickmers Maritime, a subsidiary of Rickmers Group listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, issued a first tranche of 100 million SG Dollars with a coupon of 8.45 per cent p.a. and a three year maturity of the multicurrency Medium Term Note program ("MTN program") that was started in November 2013 with a total volume of 300 million SG Dollars. Net proceeds are being used for corporate funding purposes including refinancing of existing borrowings. Despite the additional debt capital sourcing transactions, Rickmers Group’s overall net financial debt position decreased slightly from 1,575.0 million Euros as of December 31, 2013 to 1,542.3 million Euros as of June 30, 2014 while equity remained stable at 571.3 million Euros compared to 569.4 million Euros.
The Rickmers Group joint venture with Apollo Global Management affiliated funds, established in September 2013 to invest in container vessels, has acquired 12 vessels by June 30, 2014 in total. The joint venture has the capacity to invest up to 500 million US Dollars and focuses on specific secondary markets as well as on newly delivered vessels. Within the joint venture, Rickmers Group invests as a minority investor alongside Apollo and provides inter alia technical and commercial ship management for the vessels acquired.
Furthermore, within the cooperation between Rickmers Group and Oaktree Capital Management set up in June 2013 regarding newbuilding of 10 units of 5,400 TEU widebeam container vessels, the first two vessels were delivered in June 2014. While Oaktree Capital Management sources the investment funds Rickmers Group covers newbuilding supervision advisory as well as commercial and technical ship management for the vessels but is not invested directly.
Due to the overall challenging market conditions especially within the breakbulk and heavylift market segments, Rickmers Group initiated a restructuring program focusing on cost efficiency measures to stabilize and successively improve the operating result of the Rickmers-Linie segment.
At the end of the first half-year 2014 Rickmers Group has 103 vessels under management of which 52 are owned vessels and 12 are Apollo & Rickmers Group JV-owned vessels. As of June 30, 2014, overall book value of the vessels in Rickmers Group consolidated financial statements amounted to 2,202.0 million Euros in total.
