Strabag output volume grows

Austrian contractor Strabag reported a 12% year-on-year increase in output volume for 2011 to €14.3 billion, thanks to strong demand in the German building construction and civil engineering industries and the booming Polish construction sector.

Strabag said the result had also been boosted by expansion in northern Europe and its acquisition of two Swiss contractors in the first quarter of 2011.

However, the company's order backlog fell 9% compared to 2010 to €13.4 billion at the end of last year. Strabag put this down to infrastructure developments in Poland, where large public contracts that were awarded for the 2012 European Football Championships were worked off during the 2011 financial year. As a result, the company's order backlog in Poland sank from €2.3 billion in 2010 to €900 million last year.

Strabag issued a cautious forecast for 2012, with output volume expected to stay stable at around €14.3 billion. The company's building construction and civil engineering segment is expected to report output of €5.5 billion, compared to €5.1 billion in 2011, while the transportation infrastructures division is forecast to achieve an output volume of €6.1 billion, down from €6.7 billion last year.

Meanwhile, the special division and concessions business is expected to see output rise from €2.3 billion in 2011 to €2.6 billion this year.

But 2012 has started well for the company in terms of contract wins - Strabag leads a consortium that has just been awarded a €1.7 billion contract to construct the 52km Pedemontana Lombarda motorway in northern Italy

Strabag and its Italian subsidiary hold 60 % of the contract while Italian companies Grandi Lavori Fincosit and Impresa Costruzioni Giuseppe Maltauro hold the rest of the contract, with stakes of 26% and 14 % respectively. Construction is scheduled for completion by 2015.

Looking ahead, Strabag said it expected to be able to compensate for declines in Poland this year with output growth in countries.

"Strabag expects a continued unfavourable environment for transportation infrastructures in 2012. An additional burden will be the weakened demand for construction in Poland after the European Football Championship. On the other hand, Strabag expects to see continued solid business in the German building construction and civil engineering segment, improved results in niche markets such as railway construction or environmental technology, and a slight relaxation of the situation in the Czech Republic."

The company said it was targeting earnings before interest and taxis of over €300 million in 2012 - a stable result year-on-year.