Annual report 20108.31 MB - Boskalis

Report of the Board of ManagementRevenue in the home markets outside of Europe (Nigeriaand Mexico) rose 19% to € 118 million (2009: € 99 million),with the growth being attributable to the Cuyutlánproject in Mexico. The project involves the constructionof an LNG import terminal on the west coast of Mexico,including the deepening of an existing lagoon. Thevolume of work in Nigeria was slightly lower, a reflectionof reluctance by major oil companies over the past yearto engage in new investments in this region.International project marketRevenue on the international project market declinedby 8% to € 873 million (2009: € 948 million). After thecompletion of various large projects in the MiddleEast, the geographical focus of the projects shiftedto Australasia, and Central and South America. Forexample, last year saw the completion of the KhalifaPort project in Abu Dhabi, while a lot of work wascarried out on the Gorgon project in Western Australiaand four islands in the Maldives were protected againstthe consequences of climate change. Overall, revenueremains geographically well spread and there is abalanced spread across the various market segments.Specialist niche servicesThe specialist niche services generated revenue of€ 238 million, virtually the same as in the previous year(2009: € 240 million). Revenue was generated by workincluding offshore (pipeline) projects in Europe andSouth America. In addition 2010 saw the Fox Riverproject, involving the remediation of PCB-contaminateddredging spoil from the Fox River in Wisconsin (UnitedStates), enter its second year.The utilization rate of the cutter fleet fell back as aresult of maintenance work and fewer deploymentopportunities in comparison to previous years. Theaverage utilization rate was 27 weeks, compared to36 weeks in 2009.Last December Boskalis and the insurers reachedagreement on the repurchase by Boskalis of thetrailing suction hopper dredger W.D. Fairway.Following payment of the ‘constructive total loss’claim the insurance companies had acquiredownership of the vessel. Boskalis is currentlyconducting a thorough inspection of the ship andinvestigating the possibility of recommissioning it.Segment ResultThe operating result (EBIT) of the Dredging &Earthmoving segment totaled € 321 million (2009:€ 217 million). This exceptionally strong result wasattributable to the generally good quality of theprojects in the order book at the beginning of 2010and the largely successful execution of those projectscombined with optimum deployment of equipment,along with a positive settlement of a number ofprojects which had been technically concludedearlier. In addition the result includes a pre-taxamount of € 33.6 million arising from the settlementof a number of long-running insurance and otherequipment-related claims.Order bookNew order intake in 2010 amounted to€ 1,501 million.Fleet developmentsThe revenue was realized with good equipmentutilization levels. The hopper fleet was expanded withthe commissioning of the 12,000m 3 Gateway in March,the 4,500m 3 Shoalway in April and the12,000m 3 Willem van Oranje in September. In 2010 thehopper fleet achieved an annual utilization rate of 43weeks (2009: 48 weeks).Order book by market(in millions of euros) 31 Dec 10 31 Dec 09Home markets in Europe 628 843Home markets outside Europe 133 77International projects 965 1,132Specialist niche services 197 171Total 1,923 2,22340 Annual Report 2010