Cintra increased EBITDA by 24% to 120 million euro in the first quarter of 2006

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EBIT increased by 25.6% to 74.4 million euro Revenues increased by 23.9% to 184.6 million euro Growing international footprint: 76% of EBITDA and 68% of revenues came from other countries Key growth drivers: positive traffic and revenue performance, improved margins in Canada and the US, entry into service of new toll roads, and expansion in the car park business Cintra, which specialises in bidding for and managing toll roads and car parks, increased EBITDA by 23.9% in 1Q06 to 120 million euro, bringing the EBITDA margin to 65%. In 1Q06, 76% of EBITDA came from other countries, especially Canada, the US and (for the first time) Ireland. The increase in the main operating and financial aggregates of Cintra is due to positive traffic performance on all its toll roads, improved margins on toll roads in Canada, the US and Spain (R-4), strong revenue growth at 407 ETR in Canada, the entry into operation of the Chicago Skyway (for the full quarter) and the N4/N6 in Ireland, and a significant increase in the number of parking spaces. EBIT increased by 25.6% to 74.4 million euro and net income totalled 5.6 million euro (+79.1% on 1Q05). Revenues amounted to 184.6 million euro, i.e. 23.9% more than in 1Q05. Foreign revenues increased by 35.2% to 125.5 million euro and accounted for 68% of the total. Domestic revenues increased by 5.2% to over 59 million euro. At the end of 1Q06, Cintra had a net cash position of 233.2 million euro (excluding debt without recourse to the concession companies' parent company). The company has investment capacity to finance future growth using cash on hand and net cash flow envisaged in 2006-2010, as well as the possibility of releveraging its projects. Toll roads: strong growth in Canada and the US, and entry into operation of a toll road in Ireland Cintra's toll road division (21 concessions), including the results of the parent companies, increased revenues by 25.4% to 153.6 million euro and accounted for 83% of total revenues. In 1Q06, toll road EBITDA grew by 25.3% to 109.7 million euro and accounted for 91% of total EBITDA. Canadian toll road 407 ETR made a notable contribution to this result (44% of the total), and its EBITDA increased by 35.4% due to strong revenue growth and containment of operating expenses (as a result of lower winter maintenance costs and billing expenses). Growth is also due to the consolidation of Chicago Skyway for the full quarter and the entry into operation of the N4/N6 toll road in Ireland, opened to traffic in December 2005. The EBITDA margin in the toll road business, including the results of the parent companies, was 71.4%, with a considerable improvement at 407 ETR, Chicago Skyway and Radial 4. Traffic increased considerably on the main roads in the period:
  • Canada- 407 ETR averaged 268,803 daily trips (+4.8%) and vehicle kilometres travelled (VKT) rose 4.5% to 461.856 million;
  • USA- Chicago Skyway attained average daily traffic (ADT) of 45,775 in the period (18.7% higher);
  • Spain- Ausol I attained average daily traffic (ADT) of 17,756 vehicles, and Ausol II attained 16,772; Autema's traffic rose over 14% to more than 22,000 (ADT).
Highlights of the toll road division in the period:
  • In January 2006, Cintra was selected as preferred bidder for a 75-year concession for the 253-kilometre Indiana Toll Road. The concession will cost 3.85 billion USD and is the second toll road in operation to be privatised in the United States; Cintra will take over management in the coming months. The concession contract with the IFA (Indiana Finance Authority) was signed on 12 April;
  • On 1 February, the new tolls were implemented on 407 ETR in Canada: tolls for light vehicles increased by 8.7% at peak times and by 9.9% in off-peak hours;
  • On 3 April, an amicable settlement was reached between the 407 ETR road operator and the Ontario Government regarding all legal disputes between the parties. The settlement is due to both parties' decision to create a stable collaboration framework that reinforces long-term relations and provides advantages to the highway users. Highlights of the agreement:- Both parties have withdrawn all existing suits and claims and accepted the various court and arbitration decisions as final and binding. In particular, the Ontario Government has accepted the decisions regarding the Change Request, Base Year (2002) and Plate Denial. -The road operator undertakes to implement the following measures to improve the service it provides to users: 407 ETR's obligation under the concession agreement to expand the road by one lane each way was brought forward; now this will be executed in the next two years, adding a total of 100 km at an investment of approximately 100 million CAD; implementation of a four-year programme of discounts for light vehicles under which frequent users qualify for discounts of up to 15% (total value: 40 million CAD over four years); implementation of a discount programme for heavy vehicles to encourage the appropriate use of transponders and encourage heavy-vehicle drivers to use the road at off-peak hours; and the appointment, for at least three years, of an ombudsman, without executive powers, to defend users' interests.
  • On 10 April, Cintra acquired an additional 10% of the R-4 toll road from Unicaja.
Car parks: the number of managed parking spaces grew by 13.3%, strengthening Cintra's leading position Cintra's car park business registered 31 million euro in revenues in 1Q06, 17.4% more than in 1Q05, boosted by a significant increase in the number of managed parking spaces and by the entry into operation of the new T-4 terminal car parks at Madrid-Barajas airport. EBITDA in this segment increased by 10.5% to 10.3 million euro, and EBIT amounted to 6.2 million euro. At the end of 1Q06, Cintra managed 240,631 parking spaces, i.e. 13.3% more than in 1Q05, reinforcing its position as Spain's leading car park operator. By segments, the number of off-street spaces increased by 34.4% and now account for 26.8% of the total; the number of on-street controlled parking spaces increased by 7% to 149,373 (62% of the total); and the number of private parking spaces increased by 8.2% to 26,795 (11.2% of the total). The main contracts obtained in 1Q06 were: controlled on-street parking in Vitoria (Álava), controlled on-street parking and the Mota Vieja underground car park in Benavente (Zamora), and management and expansion of controlled on-street parking in Esparraguera (Barcelona).
KEY FIGURES (figures in million euro) Mar-06 Mar-05 Var (%)
Revenues 184.6 149.0 23.9
EBITDA 120.0 96.8 23.9
EBIT 74.4 59.2 25.6
Net income 5.6 3.1 79.1
Toll roads traffic
407 ETR VKT 407 ETR 268,803 461,856 256,487 441,824 4,8 4,5
Chicago Skyway 45,775 38,575 18.7
Ausol I 17,756 17,239 3.0
Ausol II 16,772 16,098 4.2
Autema 22,096 19,366 14.1
R4 6,089 5,608 8.6
Parking spaces 240,631 212,392 13.3
 

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