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Oil terminal operator Royal Vopak has posted an 8 percent rise in first-quarter operating profit today, a result which the company said is in line with its outlook for 2009.

Group operating profit excluding exceptional items rose to 85.6 million euros in the first threee months of 2009, up from 79.2 million euros during the same period last year.

Vopak said the rise in operating profit was supported by high activity levels in its oil terminal, in a market environment with strong trading flows in oil and further increasing geographical imbalances. New capacity commissioned in 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 also contributed to growth. The Q1 2009 occupancy rate was 95% (Q1 2008: 96%).

Commenting on the results, John Paul Broeders, Chairman of the Executive Board of Royal Vopak, said ‘We report an 8% higher operating profit excluding exceptional items in the first quarter of 2009. This result is fully in line with our outlook for 2009. All our other divisions across the world showed healthy operating profit increases supported by fairly stable occupancy rates in Q1 2009."

Broeders added: "Our ongoing growth strategy resulted in newly commissioned storage capacity of nearly 0.3 million cbm in a number of locations, among which in Estonia, Sweden and the UK, in this quarter. Until 2011 a further 2.2 million cbm of capacity is expected to come on stream."

Operating profit of the OEMEA division (Oil Europe, Middle East & Africa) increased 21% to EUR 31.5 million (Q1 2008: EUR 26.0 million). Total capacity expansion in OEMEA in Q1 2009 was 171,000 cbm, and included the commissioning of an additional 111,000 cbm in the Vopak E.O.S. joint venture in Estonia and 60,000 cbm in Gothenburg, Sweden, for storage of various oil products. Demand remained strong at all main OEMEA terminals.

Operating profit of the Asia division rose by 31% to EUR 30.6 million (Q1 2008: EUR 23.4 million), including a currency translation gain of EUR 0.9 million. Asia benefited from capacity additions commissioned in 2008 and positive developments in China. In Q1 2009, almost 60,000 cbm of new capacity was commissioned in Asia. Expansions were realised at the terminals in Singapore (Banyan; 30,300 cbm and Penjuru; 15,000 cbm), and Pakistan (Engro Vopak; 13,400 cbm).

In North America, first quarter operating profit increased 52% to EUR 11.4 million (Q1 2008: EUR 7.5 million), largely as a result of the full year contribution of the company's participation in the Freeport, Bahamas terminal, leading to 3.0 million cbm extra capacity in the course of 2008. The currency translation effect in Q1 2009 was EUR 1.1 million positive. In Savannah 12,700 cbm of capacity was added.

With regards to the company's outlook for the rest of 2009, Broeders said "Based on the first quarter 2009 results, our portfolio of activities, the growth program and the continued robust demand for our services, especially in the oil activities, we reconfirm our outlook of an EBITDA of at least EUR 450 million for 2009."