Great Eastern Shipping Company Limited : Q2 FY2012 Results

News was prepared under the information support of Online Daily Newspaper on Hellenic and international Shipping "Hellenic Shipping News".

14 Nov 2011

The net profit for the company was significantly affected by the Rupee depreciation during the quarter. The impact of the exchange difference for the quarter ended 30th Sep, 2011

was a negative Rs. 35.88 cr. on a stand-alone basis, and Rs. 20.42 cr on a consolidated basis.
During the quarter:
The Company took delivery of new building Kamsarmax dry bulk carrier "Jag Arya".
The Company took delivery of new building Supramax dry bulk carrier "Jag Rani".
MARKET COMMENTARY:
¾ Supply pressure continues to haunt
As anticipated, the tanker freight market remained under pressure throughout the quarter with most of the asset classes struggling to cover operating expenses. The key factors behind this weakness were subdued driving season in US, uncertain macroeconomic environment in the OECD countries, refinery shutdowns and reduction in manufacturing activities worldwide. Adding to this pressure was the steady fleet supply which caused the freight rates to decline even further. Even though some strength in the rates was witnessed due to hurricane Irene and increased crude exports from Latin America, this was soon offset by higher supply.
For dry bulk, the quarter started off on a weak note as production on both iron ore and coal was hampered by weather conditions in the main exporting areas, thereby resulting in lesser cargoes. To add to this, the logistical disruptions post the Tsunami in Japan resulted in reduction in imports. However, by end August production mainly in Australia, Brazil and Indonesia stabilized thereby increasing long haul trades once again. The sudden revival also caused congestion both in Brazilian ports as well as in China further fuelling up rates. Steady upturn in the grain trade and demand for minor bulk commodities in China supported the smaller segments. Scrapping numbers from Jan to Oct 2011 were encouraging as they crossed the 20 mn
dwt mark. Ship owners as well as charterers are increasingly resorting to slow steaming which in turn is creating both reduced fuel consumption as also higher capacity utilization.
OUTLOOK: Tanker Market:
OPEC recently lowered its world oil demand forecast for 2011 by 0.18 mb/d to show growth 0.90 mb/d. This was on back of lower demand anticipated from the western economies and ongoing global financial crisis. On account of poor refining margins, some US & European refinery operators are planning to either idle or close down the facilities over the coming year resulting in lesser movement of oil, which will add pressure on the existing weak crude tanker freight rate, though possibly help product tanker demand. Even though some signs of easing on the oil supply are seen with Libya slowly returning to normal, the steady fleet growth and higher fuel costs will keep a lid on any improvement in the margins of the tanker operators. The next trigger to watch out will be the stocking up of heating oil in the winter seasons, which can possibly drive up the tanker freight rates.
Dry Bulk Market:
The continuation of the recent uptick in the movement of dry bulk commodities will largely depend on China's sustained imports. The key to the dry bulk outlook will be the sustained activity on the longer haul trades along with slippages in deliveries, port congestions and scrapping activities. Though there seems to be no letting in demand for commodities, availability is key as it depends on production facilities and various other infrastructure and supply chain related issues.
REVENUE VISIBILITY:
The revenue visibility for the balance part of FY 2011-12 is around Rs.309 crores. Crude tankers and
product carriers (incl Gas carrier) are covered to the extent of around 70% and 66% of their operating days respectively. In case of dry bulk carriers, they are covered to the extent of around 51% of the fleet's operating days.
DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SUBSIDIARIES: Greatship (India) Limited (GIL):
GIL and its subsidiaries currently own and operate four Platform Supply Vessels (PSV), seven Anchor
Handling Tug cum Supply Vessels (AHTSV), three Multipurpose Platform Supply and Support Vessels
(MPSSV), three Platform/ ROV Support Vessels (ROVSV) and two 350 Ft jack up rigs. GIL and its subsidiaries have a total capex commitment of around US$ 395 mn for an order book of six vessels - one Multi Support Vessel (MSV) in India, three Platform/ ROV Support Vessels (ROVSV) in Sri Lanka, two
150 TBP Anchor Handling Tug cum Supply Vessels (AHTSV) in Singapore and one 350 feet jack up rig in
Dubai.
Sale & Purchase activities subsequent to Q2 FY2011-12: - Greatship Global Offshore Services Pte. Ltd, a Singapore subsidiary of GIL cancelled the shipbuilding contract for one of the Multipurpose Support Vessels with Mazagon Dock Limited, Mumbai. REVENUE VISIBILITY:
The revenue visibility for the balance part of FY 2011-12 is around Rs.467 crores. PSVs and AHTSVs are
covered to the extent of around 100% and 56% of their operating days respectively. ROVSVs and MPSSVs have coverage of around 100% and 42% for the balance part of FY2012. In case of Jackup rigs, they are covered to the extent of around 91% of the operating days.
The Great Eastern Chartering LLC (Sharjah):
This wholly owned subsidiary was set up with the objective of inchartering tankers as well as dry bulk vessels and the commercial operation of such inchartered tonnage. This company currently operates 1 dry bulk carrier with remaining inchartered duration of around 6 months.
Source: Great Eastern Shipping