Bangkok--12 Mar--i2C Communications
TTA Records Oct-Dec ‘14 Profit Despite Challenging Environment
Company on track to deliver against 2015 plan to seek and invest in growth opportunities, reducing exposure to market volatility
Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Company Limited (“TTA” or “the Group”) announces a solid set of financial results for the period October – December 2014, despite challenging markets. The company recorded net profit of THB 155 million in the last three months of 2014.
Mr. Chalermchai Mahagitsiri, President and Chief Executive Officer of Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Company Limited acknowledged that 2014 was a year of mixed-performance, as although TTA ended calendar year with positive turnaround in net profit it also faced rapid changes in the business environment, particularly during the last three months of the year. Challenges the Company faced included sharply falling oil and gas prices to declining sea freight rates and China’s economic slowdown, coupled with a number of natural disasters, such as monsoon-influenced flooding in Vietnam. The combined effects of these impacted the performance of TTA and its subsidiaries.
“While our businesses have been affected by the market volatility and unexpected events, the impact was industry wide and felt not only by us but all our peers and in all sectors of the economy. Fortunately, we believe our strategy, and our determination to implement it, has enabled us to identify and take advantage of new investment opportunities. These will help propel our growth, and will help us diversify away from, and reduce exposure to, isolated risks and volatilities from the seasonal business cycles of the transport business and from the weakening energy industry,” Mr. Mahagitsiri said.
TTA believes volatilities will continue throughout 2015 both in the industries the Company’s traditional businesses operate in as well as in the global and local economies. To reduce its exposure to such uncertainties, the Company plans to accelerate its efforts to identify new investment opportunities that will create enhanced and sustainable growth. As part of these efforts the Company’s management team has been conducting feasibility studies on several potential deals in the mainstream and alternative energy sectors, as well as the transportation and port services sectors.
It is currently in the due diligence process of conducting feasibility studies, determining investment stakes and expected returns on a number of opportunities, and intends to draw conclusions shortly, with the expectation that some projects will be initiated in 2015. TTA is targeting businesses in the fields of energy, alternative energy, transport (including expansion of the existing fleet and investment in seaports), food and beverages and a number of other growth industries.
“We are confident the company is on the right track as we seek fresh investment opportunities that strengthen our portfolio and reduce our exposure to cyclical volatilities. Our continued efforts to diversify into new sectors is helping us maintain satisfactory performance despite the oil and gas industry slump, declining sea freight rates and China’s economic slowdown,” said Mr. Mahagitsiri.
The investments will be financed using the funds raised through the recent rights offering as resolved and executed in January.
Mr. Mahagistsiri noted, “We would like to thank our shareholders for their recent support in our capital-increase share issue. This has put us in a healthy financial position and means we are fully prepared to further progress our investment plans.”
TTA also aims to reach its goal of becoming an SET50 firm, with a truly international investment portfolio. To meet this goal, it will pursue organic growth - through capacity and service area expansion, and a keen focus on profitability. Inorganic growth also features prominently in the Company’s growth plans as TTA seeks to invest in businesses that demonstrate significant potential and that will enable the Group to achieve not only strong but sustainable growth.