Annual report 20108.31 MB - Boskalis

Chairman’s statementA major initiative in the area of safety in 2010was the introduction of our new safety program,NINA (No Injuries No Accidents). Focused onthe necessary culture changes, the entire safetyprogram was developed in-house and its roll-outacross the Boskalis organization has been ongoingsince the summer of 2010. The aim is for NINA tobecome part and parcel of our everyday business.The core of NINA consists of five safety values,which mainly relate to awareness, responsibilityand open communication about safety.The NINA program enjoys the proactive supportof our senior management and will make a majorcontribution to the further improvement of safetywithin our company.FinancingIn order to finance the acquisition of SMIT, Boskalisalready successfully completed a € 230 millionequity offering of over nine million new shares in2009. In addition, a € 650 million credit facility wastaken out, as well as a € 400 million bridge loan.In 2010 we completed the overall financing with a€ 354 million private placement loan in the UnitedStates and the United Kingdom. The interest wasso intense that demand was three times greaterthan our required financing level.Even after the acquisition of SMIT our balancesheet remains solid, with a solvency level of 37.1%.At end-2010 net debt totalled € 450 million. Thenet debt/EBITDA ratio is around 0.9, well belowthe ceiling of 3.0 which applies under the financingagreements.Our strong balance sheet combined with the cashflows that we will generate over the next few yearswill enable us to pursue further targeted growth ofour business through investments and acquisitions.6 Annual Report 2010