Thu 16 May 2013, 05:58 GMT

Aegean net income up 20% in Q1


Bunker supplier reports rise in net income despite fall in revenues and volume sold.



Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. has announced that net income rose by $1.2 million, or 20%, to $7.2 million, or $0.15 basic and diluted earnings per share, during the first quarter of 2013 compared to $6.0 million, or $0.13 basic and diluted earnings per share, during the corresponding period last year.

Net income attributable to Aegean shareholders, excluding a gain from the sale of non-core assets, was $6.3 million, or $0.13 basic and diluted earnings per share.

Total revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2013, decreased by 13.3% to $1,570.5 million, compared to $1,810.9 million reported in 2012.

Gross profit, which equals total revenue less directly attributable cost of revenue, declined by 7.4% to $70.7 million, compared to $76.4 million during the first three months of 2012.

Sales of marine petroleum products fell by 13.4% to $1,558.4 million, compared to $1,799.3 million for the same period in 2012.

The volume of marine fuel sold by the company during the first quarter was down by 3.8% to 2,367,077 metric tonnes, compared to 2,461,230 metric tonnes the previous year.

Operating income excluding a non-cash loss from the sale of vessels for the first quarter of 2013 amounted to $12.4 million, compared to $13.4 million for the same period in 2012. Operating expenses excluding the non-cash loss from the sale of vessels decreased by $4.7 million, or 7.5%, to $58.3 million, compared to $63.0 million for the same period in 2012.

Commenting on the results, E. Nikolas Tavlarios, President, said: "We have continued to successfully execute on our growth initiatives, which has allowed us to make significant progress despite challenging macro headwinds. During the first quarter we achieved a sequential increase in our gross spread and continued to reduce our expenses, resulting in our ninth consecutive quarter of profitability. As expected, we saw a typical seasonal decline in volumes and utilization; however, our focus on leveraging our infrastructure allowed us to capture voyage and storage revenue opportunities and drive profitability."

Mr. Tavlarios continued: "We have entered 2013 with strong momentum, and believe we are executing the right strategy to sustain long-term growth. We continue to take a methodical approach to entering and exiting markets, diversifying our operations, and strengthening our integrated fuel logistics chain and we are confident that we are well-positioned to benefit when the market recovers from the current shipping cycle."

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Net cash provided by operating activities was $42.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2013. Net income, as adjusted for non-cash items, was $13.6 million.

Net cash used in investing activities was $3.0 million, mainly due to the advances for other fixed assets under construction which were partly offset by the proceeds from the sale of two vessels and one of the company's subsidiaries.

Net cash used in financing activities was $54.1 million, primarily driven by the pay down of net borrowings.

As of March 31, 2013, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $61.7 million and working capital of $50.5 million. Non-cash working capital, or working capital excluding cash and debt, was $403.5 million.

At the end of March, Aegean had $355.4 million in available liquidity, which includes unrestricted cash and cash equivalents of $61.7 million and available undrawn amounts under the company's working capital facilities of $293.7 million, to finance working capital requirements.

The weighted average basic and diluted shares outstanding for the three months ended March 31, 2013 were 45,660,166. The weighted average basic and diluted shares outstanding were 45,438,383.

Spyros Gianniotis, Chief Financial Officer, remarked: "Our first quarter results demonstrate the strength of our operating model and our ability to build and sustain new revenue streams and profitability in a tough operating environment. During the quarter we further streamlined our infrastructure by selling two vessels and reducing our operating expenses, both of which we expect to drive higher utilization and cash flow over the long-term. We have also taken significant steps to strengthen our balance sheet, including establishing a global trade finance facility that will provide significant additional liquidity."


Propeller Fuels logo. Propeller Fuels reviewing applicants for Singapore bunker trader position  

Bunker firm looking to hire trader to foster new business growth and sustain customer relationships.

Daisy Leader vessel. XFuel raises $20m Series A to scale low-carbon drop-in fuel production  

Maritime investors NYK Line and Stolt Ventures back waste-to-fuel technology targeting shipping decarbonisation.

Aerial view of tanker vessel at sea. Fuel treatment technology shows 21% efficiency gain in university tests  

Fuelre4m's technology reduced fuel consumption in marine engines without modifications, according to an Athens university study.

Peninsula logo. Peninsula seeks bunker trader for Houston office  

Marine fuel supplier Peninsula is recruiting a bunker trader to be based in Texas.

Berge Meru vessel. Berge Bulk completes second rotor sail installation with Anemoi on Newcastlemax vessel  

Four folding rotor sails installed on Berge Meru following earlier deployment on Valemax vessel.

Skarv Shipping cargo vessel render. Wärtsilä to supply ammonia engine for Skarv Shipping newbuild in China  

Norwegian operator’s vessel will be the first newbuild to use Wärtsilä 25 Ammonia solution.

Maersk Trieste vessel. Bound4blue installs first wind propulsion sails on Maersk Tankers vessel  

Spanish firm fits four 24-metre eSAIL units on Maersk Trieste under 20-sail contract.

Chemship and Econowind signing ceremony. Chemship orders VentoFoils for two more chemical tankers after fuel savings of up to 15%  

Dutch operator returns to Econowind for wind propulsion systems on Chemical Contender and Chemical Fighter.

NOCC Adriatic vessel. CIMC Raffles delivers 7,000-car LNG-fuelled carrier 70 days ahead of schedule  

Norwegian Car Carriers takes delivery of dual-fuel PCTC NOCC Adriatic from Chinese shipyard.

Keel-laying ceremony of a 155,500-dwt LNG dual-fuel crude oil tanker with builder's hull no. 0330005. Keel laid for 298,000-dwt LNG dual-fuel VLCC  

Construction begins on crude oil tanker for Andes Tankers I Inc.





 Recommended