DSI posts $11.7m in net profit for the first quarter of 2012
Contractor eyeing expansion into North Africa and Asia following the establishment of new offices in India and Algeria, with a focus on MEP, Civil Contracting and Water and Power.
Drake and Scull International, the UAE based construction industry contractor, has announced a net profit of $11.7m and $211.5m in revenues for the first quarter of 2012, a top line growth of 20% from the same period in 2011.
Earnings per share (EPS) were AED0.018 compared to the AED0.021 recorded in 2011. The company’s total project awards to date reached $544.5m while its order backlog closed at $2.0bn as of March 31, representing a 3% growth in comparison to the same time last year.
“The company is on track to achieve its growth objective for the year and is poised for considerable expansion in North Africa and Asia. We have seen our revenues increase and this is attributed to our sustained backlog and the timely execution of the projects on hand,” Khaldoun Tabari, CEO of DSI, explained.
“Expansion into rail is underway and the company is currently prequalifying for major bids across the GCC. The Oil & Gas division is also eyeing projects in the region and we expect continuous growth for the Civil, MEP and Water and Power businesses,” he added.
Osama Hamdan, the chief financial officer of DSI, added that the increase in revenues was based on organic growth.
“The company has been successful in reducing in receivables through improved collections during the quarter. The company effectively continues to diversify with the expansion into the rail business and establishment of new offices in India, Algeria and Iraq,” he said.
Furthermore, the MEP, Civil and Water and Power contractor has invested in related CAPEX in the current quarter, Hamdan said.
“The overall margins reflect the momentum of execution on some projects along with additional finance costs as a result of the acquisition funding,” he explained.
As such, DSI’s objective is to keep a firm grip on operational costs so as to improve net margins and maintain profitability.
Hamdan and Tabari added that aside from the primary markets, the focus for the year would continue to be towards Asia and North Africa. Furthermore, they said that DSI would continue exploring various prospects through its Civil, MEP and Water and Power divisions.
