DP World announces resilient financial results for 2020

Mar 19, 2021 India Shipping News

DUBAI : DP World Limited announces robust financial results for the year ended 31 December 2020. On a reported basis, revenue grew 11.0% to $8,533 million and adjusted EBITDA grew 0.4% to $3,319 million with adjusted EBITDA margin of 38.9%.

Results Highlights

• Revenue of $8,533 million (Revenue growth of 11.0% on reported basis)

• Revenue growth of 11.0% supported by acquisitions and full year contribution from Topaz Energy & Marine and P&O Ferries.
• Maritime and Logistics revenue up 33.2%
• Like-for-like revenue decreased by 7.0% and down 3.2% excluding one-off land sale in 2019. Like-for-like containerised revenue up 1.8%.

• Adjusted EBITDA of $3,319 million and adjusted EBITDA margin of 38.9%

• Adjusted EBITDA grew 0.4% and EBITDA margin for the year stood at 38.9%. Like-for-like adjusted EBITDA margin of 42.1%.
• Adjusted EBITDA excluding one-off land sale in 2019 decreased 0.8% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis displaying resilience of the wider portfolio.
• EBITDA margin declined due to a change in mix with the consolidation of lower margin Logistics businesses.

• Robust Cash Generation

• Cash from operating activities increased 17.8% to $2,901 million in 2020 ($2,462 million in 2019) as we focused on managing costs to preserve cash.
• Free cash flow (post cash tax and maintenance capital expenditure) improved 19.0% $2,447 million. ($2,058 million 2019).
• Leverage (Net debt to adjusted EBITDA) increased to 3.7 times (Pre-IFRS16) from 3.4 times at FY2019 due to higher net debt of $11.0bn ($10.3bn 2019). On a post-IFRS16 basis, net leverage stands at 4.3 times compared to 3.9 times at FY2019.
• DP World credit rating remains investment grade at BBB- with Stable Outlook by Fitch and Baa3 with Stable Outlook by Moody’s.
• DP World is committed to a strong investment grade rating in the medium term.

• CDPQ Partnership Expanded to $8.2bn to provide Balance Sheet Flexibility

• Global Investment Platform with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) expanded to $8.2 billion from $3.7 billion

• Disciplined Investment Across the Portfolio

• Ports & Terminals announced new investment in Senegal, Angola and Indonesia.
• Logistics & Maritime investment includes announced acquisition of Transworld and UNICO.
• Capital expenditure of $1,076 million ($1,146 million in 2019) invested across the existing portfolio.
• Capital expenditure guidance for 2021 is for up to $1.2 billion with investments planned into UAE, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), London Gateway (UK), Berbera (Somaliland), Sokhna (Egypt) and Caucedo (Dominican Republic).

• 2020 Performance Ahead of Expectations, Encouraging Start to 2021

• Portfolio has delivered better than expected performance in 2020.
• Pandemic, geopolitics and trade war continues to cause some uncertainty but medium-to-long term outlook remains positive.
• Encouraging start to trading in 2021. We remain focused on delivering integrated supply chain solutions to cargo owners to drive growth and returns.

DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, commented:

“We are delighted that our portfolio has performed better than expected and, in a year like no other, to deliver flat volumes, stable EBITDA and free-cashflow growth is a remarkable achievement. The container industry has outperformed the gloomy double digit decline that some predicted at the start of the pandemic, which illustrates the resilience of the market and DP World has outperformed the industry once again, which demonstrates that we are in the right locations and a focus on origin and destination cargo will continue to deliver the right balance between growth and resilience.

“We have continued to make progress on our strategy to enable trade and deliver an integrated supply chain solution to cargo owners. We have focused our efforts on digitizing logistics and developed solutions for several verticals. We are pleased to state that cargo owners have responded positively, and we are now delivering efficient solutions to our customers, which bodes well for the future.

“In 2020, DP World de-listed its equity from the stock exchange and returned to private ownership. The strength and resilience that our business continually demonstrates throughout the cycles is due to the investment the Group has made over the years in response to changes in our industry. Our ability to adapt and change has been the key to our success, and we must continue to evolve for continued growth.

“Looking ahead, we will continue to be selective on new investments and focus on the integration of our recent acquisitions to drive synergies, containing costs to protect profitability and managing growth capex to preserve cashflow. We remain strongly committed to our 2022 combined (DP World and PFZW) leverage target of less than 4x Net Debt to EBITDA (Pre IFRS16).

“Overall, we are pleased that our business has performed better than expected in 2020 and, while we remain cautious on the outlook given the continued issues surrounding the pandemic, geopolitical uncertainty in some parts of the world and the ongoing trade war, we are encouraged by the start to trading in 2021 and remain positive on the medium to long-term outlook for the industry and our business.”

Boilerplate

We are the leading provider of worldwide smart end-to-end supply chain & logistics, enabling the flow of trade across the globe. Our comprehensive range of products and services covers every link of the integrated supply chain – from maritime and inland terminals to marine services and industrial parks as well as technology-driven customer solutions.

We deliver these services through an interconnected global network of 128 business units in 60 countries across six continents, with a significant presence both in high-growth and mature markets. Wherever we operate, we integrate sustainability and responsible corporate citizenship into our activities, striving for a positive contribution to the economies and communities where we live and work.

Our dedicated, diverse and professional team of more than 53,220 employees from 131 countries is committed to delivering unrivalled value to our customers and partners. We do this by focussing on mutually beneficial relationships – with governments, shippers, traders, and other stakeholders along the global supply chain – relationships built on a foundation of mutual trust and enduring partnership.

We think ahead, anticipate change and deploy industry-leading technology to further broaden our digital vision to disrupt world trade and create the smartest, most efficient and innovative solutions, while ensuring a positive and sustainable impact on economies, societies and our planet.
Source: DP World