DFDS covid-19 update and preliminary Q1 key figures: Freight operations continue. Passenger services restricted  

Company announcement no. 9/2020  Ongoing adaptation of operations to market conditionsSolid financial position securedStrong focus on employee health and well-beingPreliminary Q1 2020 EBITDA decreased 10% to DKK 610mConference call for analysts and investors today 21 April 11.00am CET. See end of announcement for call details. Our current key priorities are to take care of our employees' and partners' health and well-being, to preserve jobs and to continue to provide...

København Ø, 21/04/2020 (informazione.news - comunicati stampa - trasporti)

Conference call for analysts and investors today 21 April 11.00am CET. See end of announcement for call details.

Our current key priorities are to take care of our employees' and partners' health and well-being, to preserve jobs and to continue to provide vital ferry and logistics services for our customers as well as contributing to keeping Europe's transport infrastructure open for business.  

Operational measures to adapt to Covid-19
84% of DFDS' total revenue in 2019 of DKK 17bn was generated by freight activities, including freight ferry services and logistics solutions. Passenger ferry services generated 16% of DFDS' total revenue in 2019.

All of DFDS' freight activities continue to operate through the lock-downs as Europe supports its economies by exempting seafarers, dock workers and truck drivers from travel restrictions to keep trade open for all kinds of goods, including priority items such as medicine and food. On the other hand, the lock-downs have caused passenger routes to be suspended.

To adapt activities to the lock-downs, a number of measures have been and are being taken:

Win23 strategy initiatives and other strategic projects are continuing albeit with some delay.

Solid financial position
DFDS is in a solid position with regard to both liquidity resources and financial flexibility to meet challenges and opportunities that may arise from present and future market conditions.

Liquidity resources at the end of Q1 2020 amounted to DKK 1.7bn consisting of cash and cash equivalents of DKK 0.3bn and undrawn committed credit facilities of DKK 1.4bn. In April, additional committed facilities of a minimum of DKK 750m have been secured.

The covenants of a loan agreement — entered into in June 2018 in connection with the acquisition of U. N. Ro-Ro — have been adapted to reflect the uncertainty caused by Covid-19. No other loan agreements contain relevant covenant risk.

Preliminary key figures for Q1 2020
In view of the continued exceptionally high level of uncertainty, a selection of preliminary key figures from the Q1 2020 income statement is provided in the table below ahead of the scheduled reporting of Q1 2020 on 7 May.

Preliminary Q1 revenue decreased 1% to DKK 3.8bn and preliminary EBITDA before special items decreased 10% to DKK 610m.

Covid-19 had until mid-March a limited impact on revenue and earnings. From mid-March, passenger revenue and earnings were reduced as two passenger routes were suspended and passenger travel on other routes was reduced to only essential travel. To a lesser extent freight activities were also negatively impacted from mid-March by lower activity related to Covid-19.

The Q1 revenue decrease was thus mainly due to a drop in passenger revenue in March. Freight revenue remained overall on level with 2019, including positive impacts from acquisitions and bunker surcharges related to the transition to new rules limiting the sulphur content in fuel oil from the start of the year.

Around half of the decrease in EBITDA was related to lower passenger activity caused by Covid-19. The other half of the decrease was due to a negative Covid-19 impact on freight, increased earnings in the comparison period Q1 2019 from UK stockpiling ahead of Brexit and a lower result for special cargo logistics mainly due to one-off costs. 

Key risks
The current situation gives rise to a number of risks that could impact operations and earnings in 2020. At this point in time, key risks for DFDS are:

Q1 2020 reporting
DFDS reports Q1 2020 on 7 May 2020.

Conference call details for today
Analyst and investor conference call today 21 April 11.00am CET.

If you wish to take part in the audio conference, please dial up at least five minutes before the conference begins. It will start on time, and participants will be asked to register name and company name beforehand. 

The conference will be broadcast live on https://www.dfds.com/en/about/investors/2020-investor-call and published there for future reference.

Call details: +45 32 71 49 98. Room number: 481868. Participant pin code: 6629.

For participants outside Denmark, please find call numbers here: https://public.speakservecloud.com/dial-in-numbers

Contact

Torben Carlsen, CEO
+45 33 42 32 01

Karina Deacon, CFO
+45 33 42 33 42

Søren Brøndholt Nielsen, IR
+45 33 42 33 59

Gert Jakobsen, Communications
+45 33 42 32 97

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act

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