• Business Day (South Africa): Emerging markets

Investor Relations Manager

Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd.

Tel: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]


SOURCE Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd.
200709120800PR_NEWS_USPR_____CNW012.xml
Document PRN0000020070912e39c0039n
Dockwise awarded contract testing program with the Military Sealift Command
835 words

12 September 2007

Market Wire

ITWR

English

(c) Copyright 2007 Market Wire, Inc.
BREDA, NORWAY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- Sep 12, 2007 --
Hamilton, Bermuda, 12 September 2007 - Dockwise Ltd ("Dockwise") has been awarded a contract by US Military Sealift Command for the use of one of its specialised open stern vessels for offshore operational design tests. The contract is due to be executed late 2008 and has a gross value in excess of USD 25 million, including the costs of modification of the vessel.
This is the fourth time Dockwise will provide one of its large heavy transport vessels to the US Navy for offshore operational tests. These tests are meant to provide data and design criteria for a new navy vessel called MLP (Mobile Logistics Platform). These new MLP vessels are aimed to be part of the navy's sea-basing effort to facilitate the transfer of material from large cargo ships to an intermediate platform for ultimate transfer to shore on various types of landing crafts. Dockwise will provide one of its large flat deck open stern vessels that will be outfitted with a number of technical adjustments required to perform the various tests, amounting to approximately USD 10 million. The testing off the east coast of the US will provide required data that will assist with ramp design and motion compensation in various sea states.
André Goedée, CEO of Dockwise, confirms that the unique character of the Dockwise flat deck open stern vessels makes them particularly suitable for the tests of the US Navy. He comments: "Following several tests executed with Dockwise vessels in recent years, this award is a further confirmation of the appreciation the US Navy has for the professionalism of the Dockwise crew and organisation as well as the suitability of the vessels. These tests require substantial additional engineering input from Dockwise, looking at the particular requirements of the US Navy. They do however form a perfect fit with our capabilities built up in recent years. It is interesting to see that the military market continues to provide substantial utilization for the large Dockwise vessels."
About Dockwise Ltd/the Dockwise Group
Dockwise Ltd is the parent company of the Dockwise group of companies (the "Dockwise Group"), one of the world's leading integrated heavy lift services providers.
Following the recent combination with Dockwise Ltd (then named Sealift Ltd), the Dockwise Group currently owns a fleet of 22 vessels, of which 17 are semi-submersible heavy transport vessels and the remaining 5 are due to be converted into semi-submersible heavy transport vessels. The Dockwise Group is able to transport the heaviest cargos over vast distances. In addition, the Dockwise Group provides its customers with high value added services such as engineering, project management and front-end engineering design, particularly in the transportation and installation of offshore structures business. This capability has been further enhanced by the recent acquisitions of Offshore Kinematics Inc and Ocean Dynamics LLC. The Dockwise Group employs about 800 people worldwide. With a global network of offices in Bermuda ( Dockwise Ltd's headquarters), Breda, (the Netherlands, being the operational headquarters of the Dockwise Group), Houston (Texas, USA), Shanghai (China), Shenzen (China), Busan (South Korea), Lagos (Nigeria) and Fort Lauderdale (USA)/Golfe Juan (France)/Genua (Italy) (Dockwise Yacht Transport), as well as 8 representing agents, the Dockwise Group provides an extensive service network to its clients. For further information: www.dockwise.com
This document contains certain forward-looking statements relating to the business, financial performance and results of the Dockwise Group and/or the industry in which it operates. Forward-looking statements concern future circumstances and results and other statements that are not historical facts, sometimes identified by the words "believes", "expects", "predicts", "intends", "projects", "plans", "estimates", "aims", "foresees", "anticipates", "targets", and similar expressions. The forward-looking statements, contained in this document, including assumptions, opinions and views of the Dockwise Group or cited from third party sources are solely opinions and forecasts which are uncertain and subject to risks. A multitude of factors can cause actual events to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Neither the Dockwise Group nor any of its subsidiary undertakings nor any of its officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does any of the foregoing accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed in this document or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. No representation or warranty (express or implied) is made as to, and no reliance should be placed on, any information, including projections, estimates, targets and opinions, contained herein, and no liability whatsoever is accepted as to any errors, omissions or misstatements contained herein, and, accordingly, neither the Dockwise Group nor any of its subsidiary undertakings nor any such person's officers or employees accepts any liability whatsoever arising directly or indirectly from the use of this document. ----------------------------------------------------------

For further information:

Jacqueline Lenterman, Investor Relations

Tel: [phone]


Copyright © Hugin ASA 2007. All rights reserved.
Document ITWR000020070912e39c000xd

Dockwise awarded contract testing program with the Military Sealift Command
829 words

12 September 2007

Hugin Press Release

HUGNEN

English

(c) 2007
Hamilton, Bermuda, 12 September 2007 - Dockwise Ltd ("Dockwise") has been awarded a contract by US Military Sealift Command for the use of
one of its specialised open stern vessels for offshore operational

design tests. The contract is due to be executed late 2008 and has a

gross value in excess of USD 25 million, including the costs of

modification of the vessel.

This is the fourth time Dockwise will provide one of its large heavy

transport vessels to the US Navy for offshore operational tests.

These tests are meant to provide data and design criteria for a new

navy vessel called MLP (Mobile Logistics Platform). These new MLP

vessels are aimed to be part of the navy's sea-basing effort to

facilitate the transfer of material from large cargo ships to an

intermediate platform for ultimate transfer to shore on various types

of landing crafts. Dockwise will provide one of its large flat deck

open stern vessels that will be outfitted with a number of technical

adjustments required to perform the various tests, amounting to

approximately USD 10 million. The testing off the east coast of the

US will provide required data that will assist with ramp design and

motion compensation in various sea states.

André Goedée, CEO of Dockwise, confirms that the unique character of

the Dockwise flat deck open stern vessels makes them particularly

suitable for the tests of the US Navy. He comments: "Following

several tests executed with Dockwise vessels in recent years, this

award is a further confirmation of the appreciation the US Navy has

for the professionalism of the Dockwise crew and organisation as well

as the suitability of the vessels. These tests require substantial

additional engineering input from Dockwise, looking at the particular

requirements of the US Navy. They do however form a perfect fit with

our capabilities built up in recent years. It is interesting to see


that the military market continues to provide substantial utilization for the large Dockwise vessels."
About Dockwise Ltd/the Dockwise Group
Dockwise Ltd is the parent company of the Dockwise group of companies (the "Dockwise Group"), one of the world's leading integrated heavy lift services providers.
Following the recent combination with Dockwise Ltd (then named Sealift Ltd), the Dockwise Group currently owns a fleet of 22 vessels, of which 17 are semi-submersible heavy transport vessels and
the remaining 5 are due to be converted into semi-submersible heavy

transport vessels. The Dockwise Group is able to transport the

heaviest cargos over vast distances. In addition, the Dockwise Group

provides its customers with high value added services such as

engineering, project management and front-end engineering design,

particularly in the transportation and installation of offshore

structures business. This capability has been further enhanced by the

recent acquisitions of Offshore Kinematics Inc and Ocean Dynamics

LLC. The Dockwise Group employs about 800 people worldwide. With a

global network of offices in Bermuda ( Dockwise Ltd's headquarters),

Breda, (the Netherlands, being the operational headquarters of the

Dockwise Group), Houston (Texas, USA), Shanghai (China), Shenzen

(China), Busan (South Korea), Lagos (Nigeria) and Fort Lauderdale

(USA)/Golfe Juan (France)/Genua (Italy) (Dockwise Yacht Transport),

as well as 8 representing agents, the Dockwise Group provides an


extensive service network to its clients.
For further information: www.dockwise.com
This document contains certain forward-looking statements relating to the business, financial performance and results of the Dockwise Group
and/or the industry in which it operates. Forward-looking statements

concern future circumstances and results and other statements that

are not historical facts, sometimes identified by the words

"believes", "expects", "predicts", "intends", "projects", "plans",

"estimates", "aims", "foresees", "anticipates", "targets", and

similar expressions. The forward-looking statements, contained in

this document, including assumptions, opinions and views of the

Dockwise Group or cited from third party sources are solely opinions

and forecasts which are uncertain and subject to risks. A multitude

of factors can cause actual events to differ significantly from any

anticipated development. Neither the Dockwise Group nor any of its

subsidiary undertakings nor any of its officers or employees

guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking

statements are free from errors nor does any of the foregoing accept

any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed

in this document or the actual occurrence of the forecasted

developments. No representation or warranty (express or implied) is

made as to, and no reliance should be placed on, any information,

including projections, estimates, targets and opinions, contained

herein, and no liability whatsoever is accepted as to any errors,

omissions or misstatements contained herein, and, accordingly,

neither the Dockwise Group nor any of its subsidiary undertakings nor

any such person's officers or employees accepts any liability

whatsoever arising directly or indirectly from the use of this

document.

----------------------------------------------------------


For further information:
Jacqueline Lenterman, Investor Relations Tel: [phone]
http://hugin.info/137711/R/1152959/221627.pdf
Document HUGNEN0020070912e39c000b6
NEWS

Regional GPS system in 5 years, says ISRO chief

429 words

5 September 2007

Business Line (The Hindu)

BSNLNE

10

English

(c) 2007 The Hindu Business Line
Our Bureau
Bangalore, Sept. 4 The country’s own regional ‘GPS’ should be in place in five years, giving a push to efficient air traffic management, transportation and personal positioning applications.
The first of the seven satellites of the Rs 1,600-crore Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) will be launched in 2010 “and the entire constellation will be in place by 2012,” said Mr G. Madhavan Nair, ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space.
ISRO will make and launch the navigation-only satellites on its PSLV rocket. The design of the system and the 1-1.5-tonne class satellites has been completed and protomodels are being finalised, according to Mr Nair, who was at a two-day UN-organised International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems held here on Tuesday.
Benefits
Mr Nair said positioning would revolutionise the next decade and touch all aspects of human life, just as cell-phones have ruled this decade. The regional navigation system would also improve fleet monitoring and management, trains, land survey and disaster relief and rescue operations. The main beneficiary would be civil and military aviation, which would get maximum accuracy in landing position and time.
Global support
The meeting chaired by Mr Hans Haubold, Director of the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UN-OOSA), is looking at evolving a platform for global GNSS cooperation.
GNSS, according to Dr S.V. Kibe, head of ISRO’s SatNav Programme, would spawn a new industry to make receivers, ground station equipment, digital map providers, among others. The meeting also looked at issues of harmonisation and inter-operability of systems and smooth transit between regions.
Countries are now dependent on the US GPS, the only working positioning system, and have been forced to fine-tune or augment their systems, in particular for aviation needs.
Some are investing heavily and racing to develop their own global systems similar to GPS in the next three to five years; among them are Russia with its GLONASS and Europe with the multi-nation €2.5-billion Galileo. Japanese, Chinese and Nigerian navigational versions are also coming up. Mr K.N. Suryanarayana Rao, Project Director, INRSS, said the country’s other satnav project — the Indian GPS augmentation project called GAGAN — had been tested at 18 domestic airports and would enter the operational stage. The satellite-based augmentation system would be launched in 2010 when ISRO puts up its GSat-4 carrying a navigational payload. ISRO and the Airports Authority of India have jointly sponsored GAGAN.
Document BSNLNE0020071113e395002qt
OPINION

Africa’s rising star, and India

PARVATHI VASUDEVAN

1,255 words

5 September 2007

Business Line (The Hindu)

BSNLNE

08

English

(c) 2007 The Hindu Business Line
Nigeria is growing in economic stature and drawing global investment. This is an opportunity that India can tap fruitfully, with careful focus on certain critica areas, says PARVATHI VASUDEVAN.
Africa, a continent of 53 sovereign countries, can never ever be out of the news. It is a pity that the media often focuses on negative developments in a handful of countries in a manner that leaves an impression that life in the continent is brutal. That certainly is not true.
Since 2000, a number of African countries have performed well, as is evident from Africa’s average economic growth of 5.5 per cent over the last six years and the forecast growth of near about 7 per cent in 2007, according to the IMF’s latest projections.
The West African region is one of the three most important deepwater areas with the fastest rate of discovery of additional new oil reserves in the world. The region includes oil-producing Nigeria, Angola, Gabon, Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Burkina Faso, Sao Tome and Principe and Ghana. Yet the region is the least explored area for oil. This explains why America’s Chevron and its partners have planned to invest $17 billion between 2006 and 2011. In Angola alone, the Italian ENI SPA and Brazil’s Petrobas have invested $900 million and $310 million, respectively.
Catching the global eye
Of all the countries in the continent, the rising star is Nigeria. It is Africa’s largest oil producer. Nigeria’s Bonny Light is the sweetest crude oil. It is easier and less expensive to refine than the heavy oils from the more sensitive and politically volatile West Asia. With its sheer size, large English-speaking population, and untapped natural resources, Nigeria is attracting enormous foreign investment, including those of the diaspora. This is notwithstanding problems of governance in the oil-producing Niger Delta region.
The Government of Nigeria plans to spend $12 billion a year on oil and gas exploration in the next four years. Besides, it is working out a strategy to develop and promote the financial sector in order to become one of the top 20 economies of the world by 2020. Its recently established Africa Finance Corporation will drive private initiatives to improve transport infrastructure and develop agriculture, energy, telecom, mining, consumer goods, tourism and financial services.
No wonder, therefore, that China invested $2.6 billion in Nigeria alone in 2006. The state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corporation and state oil entities from other emerging market economies have become welcome partners in Nigerian oil policy planning. Others in the fray are Shell and Mobil oil companies, Norway, and two Venezuelan energy firms with $7-billion commitment.
ONGC Videsh Ltd and ONGC Mittal Energy Ltd, Indian Oil Corporation and the Gas Authority of India have shown interest in oil exploration, establishment of refineries and laying down gas pipeline from the Niger Delta to Algeria and eventually to Europe. It is estimated that by 2010, one out of every five barrels of growth in the global oil production capacity will come from the West African oil fields, with Nigeria accounting for the bulk of it. Nigeria has proven oil reserves in excess of 35 billion barrels and gas reserves of 186 trillion cubic ft.
Among top dozen
Goldman Sachs has placed Nigeria among the top dozen of the emerging countries to be watched. Nigeria also enjoys the confidence of international financial institutions. What is noteworthy is that market discipline drives the economic dynamism today, unlike in the past when state ownership and centralised control were the dominant features. Confidence also runs high as the new government has signalled its commitment to stay on the course of comprehensive economic reforms.
The Indian Government and private entrepreneurship seem to have recognised these positive developments and have shed their traditional role of being reluctant suitors of Africa, particularly of Nigeria. They could, in fact, usefully interact with about 25,000 Indians living there for over 20 years, engaged in trading, manufacturing and marketing in the commercial capital, Lagos.
Indians in Nigeria
Second-generation Indians in Nigeria have shown strong commitment to Nigeria’s success, with several of them actively sponsoring educational institutions and healthcare programmes for the underprivileged in and around Lagos. India’s trade with Nigeria has increased, with exports comprising paper and wood products, textiles, plastics, chemicals, drugs and pharmaceuticals, machinery and transport equipment. India imports crude oil, cotton and cashew-nuts.
According to the Indian High Commission in Abuja, India’s economic assistance to Nigeria is qualitatively different in that the investments place emphasis on training and employing locals at all levels of activity, unlike investments from other countries, as, for example, China. Besides, India’s investments are diversified across the non-oil sector too. Moreover, most of India’s initiatives are private-sector driven.
Taurian Resources, an Indian manufacturer of mining equipment, has invested about $50 billion to turn round the coalfield in the state of Enugu, bring in the latest mining equipment and use coal to help upgrade the existing power plants. Indian enterprises, notably NTPC, Nagarjuna Fertilisers, the Jindal group and Reliance Industries, have shown interest in investing in textiles, telecommunications, power generation, agriculture, mining and manufacturing. Indian software companies have been providing crucial support to Nigerian banks.
Possible focus areas
Laudable as these initiatives are, Indian investors should be sensitive to the political and social realities — diverse ethnicity, long periods of military rule and a fledgling democracy yet to take root, unemployment and a high degree of income inequality. Against this backdrop, which requires investors to be socially responsible, it is best for the Indian state and entrepreneurs to focus on some critical areas.
First, the area of human capital development, particularly the area of knowledge revolution, building on the former President, Mr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s 2004 initiative. The establishment of technology and medical institutions should claim priority.
Second, public and private Indian investment could be augmented in affordable housing, transport, in particular road building, power generation, rural electrification, water reservoirs, development of solar energy, training of medical personnel, dairy development and pharmaceuticals, with special emphasis on tackling malaria, water-borne and other tropical diseases.
Third, private investments in iron, steel and cement would help Nigeria build its productive capacity. Fourth, private investors could consider setting up hospitals at the high end so as to make Nigeria the destination of medical tourism in Africa.
Finally, cooperation in terms of providing scholarships and fellowships at scientific laboratories (as was done at the Central Drug Institute at Lucknow) and advanced schools of learning in India needs to be extended and strengthened. These initiatives will help Nigeria move towards achieving its Millennium Development Goals. Nigeria is indeed poised for exciting times in terms of a socio-political and techno-economic transformation in the very near future.
India too would gain in the process. Her involvement with Nigeria will help consolidate her position as a lead player in the industrialisation of other African countries, especially Angola, Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Ghana.
Over time, India could expect to draw political support from African countries in international negotiations on a number of economic and diplomatic issues.
Indian entrepreneurs could also benefit by reducing risks of exposure through widening of investments across countries.
(The author, a former Reader at the Centre for African Studies, University of Mumbai, now living in Abuja, can be reached at [e-mail])
Document BSNLNE0020071113e395002qi
Satellite Manufacturing: A New Landscape
1,508 words

1 September 2007

Via Satellite

VIAS

Vol. 22; Issue 9

English

(c) 2007 Access Intelligence, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
By Greg Berlocher
Satellite manufacturers suffered a dearth of orders from 2001 to 2003, but the famine has ended and contracts for new satellites are rolling in at a steady rate. While good times appear to have returned to the satellite manufacturing segment, the market's future has become clouded somewhat by consolidation among the fixed satellite services companies. Will this change the competitive landscape for spacecraft manufacturers? Does one manufacturer stands to gain while others may lose? And could this ultimately lead to consolidation among the satellite manufacturers?
The satellite manufacturing market is dominated by six major manufacturers -- Boeing Satellite Systems, Lockheed Martin, Orbital Sciences, and Space Systems/Loral in the United States and Thales Alenia Space and EADS Astrium in Europe, "each focusing on a sweet spot," says Ken Lee, vice president of space systems management & planning for Intelsat. "For instance, Orbital Sciences is very efficient at building small, cost-effective satellites, while others are better at building medium-sized satellites and others at building large ones."
These manufacturers serve 35 different fixed satellite services operators in a market that is very cyclical, says Rachel Villain, an analyst with Paris- based Euroconsult who tracks the satellite manufacturing market. But following recent consolidations, the top three -- Intelsat, SES Global and Eutelsat -- "represent 60 percent of that market," she says. "You simply can't discount their effect on the overall market."
Compact, Midsize, SUV
One impact that consolidation will have on the manufacturing market is the size of the satellites being ordered. "Historically, Intelsat's satellites were very large and complex, while PanAmSat opted for medium-sized satellites," says Villain. "Transoceanic telecommunications traffic on satellites is declining due to the growth in fiber optic cables. It is interesting that after the merger, Intelsat is ordering more smaller satellites."
While the mix of satellites may be changing, Intelsat provides an encouraging view of the future for the major manufacturers in the market. "Things are looking very good for new orders right now," says Lee. "We have eight active programs underway. ...We expect to sign one to two more contracts by the end of the year. Our core strategy is to replace assets as they near their end of life. We have a master plan that goes out 10 to 15 and even 20 years. In addition to replacing existing assets, there are opportunities for new satellites that come up every year as well."
Marco Caceres, an analyst with the Teal Group of Fairfax, Va., believes that consolidation among the largest satellite operators ultimately could be a boon for those that make the largest satellites, such as a Boeing's 702 that weighs about 6,000 kilograms and can be outfitted with more than 100 transponders. "These satellites are tremendously expensive, both to build and to launch," he says. "Industry consolidation has allowed more orders for very large satellites."
European manufacturers EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space intend to challenge Boeing for a slice of this market with the development of the Alphabus program, says Matthieu Roulet, marketing manager for EADS Astrium. The satellite's mass is estimated around 8,000 kilograms. "It is important for our companies to be represented in this segment of the market, and we intend to offer an entire range of products," he says. "The Alphabus satellite will provide product capability beyond our Eurostar platform and Thales Alenia Space's Spacebus satellite.
There are significant commercial challenges to developing a satellite of such proportions, says Caceres, because while the largest operators may look for satellites of that size, there are still "a limited number of customers for such an expensive satellite," he says. "In addition to the cost of the satellite, its massive size would require a dedicated launch vehicle. The Ariane 5 satellite can launch multiple satellites, allowing several companies to share launch costs, but the Alphabus satellite is so large you will have to dedicate the entire mission to one satellite. Who can afford to pay $150 million to $200 million for a single satellite?"
Launching a super satellite is only the first hurdle. Leasing the large number of transponders will take time -- perhaps too much time, says Caceres. In many ways, leasing the transponders on a satellite is akin to leasing office space in a skyscraper, as occupancy rates ultimately determine the economic success or failure of the venture. Caceres noted that the Empire State building stood half-vacant for a large number of years before it was finally leased out. The same could very well happen to a jumbo satellite. The major difference is that the owners of the Empire State Building did not have to worry about the building running out of fuel.
While there are challenges, EADS Astrium still considers Alphabus a good investment based on the current state of the market. "We agree that the market for Alphabus is small, but there is a value proposition in certain applications where the combined costs of the satellite, launch vehicle and insurance is significantly lower per transponder than those of a smaller satellite," says Roulet.
While the market size for very large satellites is debatable, it is clear that there has been a tremendous uptake of small and medium satellites among operators due to the downturn in the market five years ago. After the telecommunication bubble burst, the investment community put the brakes on capital spending. Coming out of the slump, the operators have a nice balance between capacity and demand and are taking a more disciplined approach when adding capacity to their fleets, leading to significant growth for small satellites. A decade ago, small satellites represented roughly 15 percent of the overall market. They now make up almost one-third.
"A small satellite is also a good choice when an operator wants to introduce a new service but isn't sure of the total demand," says Barry Beneski, a spokesman for Orbital Sciences, which offers the small Star 2 platform. "Operators can put a small spacecraft into orbit quickly, and if they need more capabilities they can order a second spacecraft."
Assessing The Future
While the market for communications satellite orders has steadied itself, the number of expected orders per year still falls far below the industry's manufacturing capacity. Satellite builders have experienced this pressure before when the slump in orders was at its worst and believe that the current order cycle can sustain the industry. Changes in the sector, such as the reduction in the number of component suppliers, have forced the manufacturers to improve their processes, says Lee. "The real difference is how you design your spacecraft," he says. "These manufacturers have done a good job improving their processes, thereby reducing their costs."
But other factors, such as new competitors, could upset this market balance. In November 2005, Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corp. received a contract to build the Superbird-7 satellite for Japanese satellite service provider Space Communications Corp., the first time a Japanese satellite maker won a contract to build a satellite for a domestic operator. Previously, all 18 of Japan's commercial communications satellites were built by U.S. manufacturers.
Another factor is that several countries, notably India and China, have invested heavily in national space programs and now are exporting their technology. China has launched a satellite for Nigeria, and Antrix, the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation, has teamed with EADS Astrium to build satellites in the 3,000-kilogram class that feature EADS Astrium payloads mated to an Indian satellite bus. Eutelsat has ordered the first satellite from this venture, with the W2M satellite scheduled for launch in early 2008.
This rise of new manufacturers could depress prices for satellites in much the same way the influx of state-owned satellites over Asia forced down transponder prices in the region. "With the entry of national space programs into the market, all of the players may not be out to make a profit," says Jeremy Close, communications director for EADS Astrium in the United Kingdom. "For instance, from the Chinese point of view, they might be willing to offer satellite manufacturing capabilities to countries in exchange for something else besides currency; say, access to oil. This shouldn't be discounted."
Competitive technologies always could be potential market shapers, says Villain. "A disruptive technology may come along which could completely change the competitive landscape of satellite manufacturing," she says. "IPTV is a potential example. It is very popular in Europe, and if it catches on in the United States it might challenge direct broadcast satellite for dominance."
Conclusion
Through disciplined, incremental additions to their fleets and replacement orders, satellite operators are working to create a healthy balance between capacity and demand. This, in turn, should provide a sustainable market for satellite manufacturers, as the current uptake of new satellites is the highest in a decade and has manufacturers optimistic. The segment appears to be content filling 20 to 25 orders per year. If they are, look for the competitive landscape to remain the same.
Document VIAS000020070919e39100007
Informa PLC - Interim Results
11,564 words

30 August 2007

02:01 AM

Regulatory News Service

RNS

English

(c) 2007
RNS Number:9808C Informa PLC 30 August 2007
Informa plc
Unaudited Interim Report for the Six Months Ended 30 June 2007
• Strong trading across all three divisions (Academic & Scientific, Professional and Commercial) and three business streams (Publishing, PI and Events) • Pro forma constant currency revenue up 10% • Pro forma constant currency adjusted operating profit up 24% • Adjusted operating margin rises to 21.8% with all divisions reporting increases • Dividend up 70% in line with new policy • Adjusted diluted EPS up 17% • Datamonitor acquisition complete • Confident of 2007 outlook
Strong Performance Across the Board
2007 2006 Increase Pro forma £m £m % cc (1) %
Revenue 532.5 533.7 0 10

Operating profit 74.8 60.4 24

Adjusted(2) operating profit 116.0 105.1 10 24

Profit before tax 87.8 39.1 125

Adjusted(3) profit before tax 95.6 83.8 14

Profit for period 68.9 29.5 133

Adjusted4 profit for period 71.7 61.2 17

Basic earnings per share (p) 16.24 6.99 132

Diluted earnings per share (p) 16.18 6.96 132

Adjusted(4) diluted earnings per share (p) 16.84 14.44 17

Dividend per share (p) 5.60 3.30 70

Cash conversion(5) 79% 67%


1. Adjusted for material acquisitions and effects of changes in foreign currency exchange rates. This also adjusts for the reduction in revenue of £18m in 2007 from the new 3GSM contract and the impact of the quadrennial IPEX exhibition which contributed £21m to 2006 revenues. The related adjusted operating profit impact for 3GSM was £nil and for IPEX was £7.7m.
2. Excludes restructuring and reorganisation costs of £nil (2006: £2.9m), and intangible asset amortisation of £41.1m (2006: £41.8m).
3. Excludes restructuring and reorganisation costs of £nil (2006: £2.9m), intangible asset amortisation of £41.1m (2006: £41.8m) and Blackwell's profits of £33.4m (2006: £nil).
4. Excludes restructuring and reorganisation costs of £nil (2006: £2.9m), intangible asset amortisation of £41.1m (2006: £41.8m), Blackwells' profits of £33.4m (2006: £nil) and related tax of £5.0m (2006: £13.0m).
5. Adjusted cash generated by operations (note 10 of the financial statements) divided by adjusted operating profit.
Enquiries:
Informa plc Peter Rigby, Chairman Tel: [phone] David Gilbertson, Chief Executive Tony Foye, Finance Director Susanna Kempe, Chief Marketing Officer
Maitland William Clutterbuck Tel: [phone]
Chairman's and Chief Executive's Report
"The need for quality information, and the value people place on it, is growing. We are seeing good demand for our products and services across all formats and are benefiting from additional revenue growth by connecting formats, markets and territories. This has resulted in a strong first half and we are confident of another successful full year for Informa."
David Gilbertson, Chief Executive
Informa has begun the year strongly. On a pro forma constant currency basis ("pro forma"), revenue rose 10% and adjusted operating profit was 24% higher.
Profit before tax (PBT) for the period of £87.8m was 125% ahead of the same time last year, £33.4m of this was from the disposal of Informa's Blackwell Publishing share holdings. Adjusted PBT increased by 14%.
All three divisions (Academic & Scientific, Professional and Commercial) translated good pro forma revenue growth into even greater adjusted operating profit increases. Informa's adjusted operating profit margin for the first half of the year is 21.8%, ahead of last half year's 19.7% and 2006 full year 21.1%.
The Academic & Scientific division had resilient pro forma revenue growth of 7%, translating into pro forma adjusted operating profit growth of 27%. The Professional division had a robust 10% pro forma revenue growth, translating into 18% pro forma adjusted operating profit growth and the Commercial division had a growth capturing 14% pro forma revenue increase, translating into 28% higher pro forma adjusted operating profit.
The diversity of Informa's product offering across sectors and geographies gives us particular strength. In the first half of this year from our operations in 80 countries and hundreds of vertical markets, Informa customers paid to receive premium content in books, journals, magazines, newspapers, exhibitions, training courses, PI engagements, data feeds, and increasingly through a full range of electronic media.
Across Informa 95% of all subscription and licence revenue is now digitally delivered. We have made the investment to ensure that we can take advantage of the many opportunities provided by digital delivery: greater customisation, greater speed to market and greater reach.
The acquisition of Datamonitor (DM), whose market intelligence is delivered electronically, supports this further. We expect to accelerate Datamonitor's already robust growth through extending its global footprint using Informa's broad geographical office network; leveraging Informa's 20 million record marketing database and 12,500 event promotion opportunities and connecting key account customers in shared markets.
Datamonitor has also strengthened our revenue mix. On an annualised basis with DM as part of the Group then 41% of our revenue now comes from highly resilient subscription and academic books sales. If we add to that the 40% of our events revenue which comes from our top 200 largest events and the 90% of our PI revenue which renews annually, we see that three quarters of Informa's revenue mix is visible and renewing. Due to the higher margins of both our publishing revenues and our leading events this translates to approximately 90% in adjusted operating profit terms.
Current Trading and Outlook
Current trading across all divisions and revenue streams is good. We are seeing good demand for our information across all formats and benefiting from additional revenue growth by connecting formats, markets and territories.
In Academic & Scientific we continue to benefit from our high subscription renewals and the increase of electronic media. The next set of electronic archives (Health Sciences; Politics, International Relations and Area Studies; Strategic, Defence and Security Studies) which all have a high drop through have been sourced and are beginning pre sales.
In the Professional division the PI businesses which have enjoyed double digit growth in the first half are being fuelled by the on-going internationalisation of their sales teams and client base. This is expected to provide a strong engine for the second half year also.
In Commercial, the extension of our leading brands into all media formats is driving strong half year growth. Building on the successful event brand, Cityscape, the Cityscape Market Intelligence Service is set to launch in October 2007. In Commodities, the World Ethanol event, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in the second half of the year, has for the first time been produced according to the Large Scale Event model and current registrations are four times the same point last year.
Datamonitor Datamonitor has had a strong start to the year with organic growth of 22% and total revenue growth of 62%. This momentum is continuing well into the second half of the year. Supported by the planned Informa synergies, forecasts for the rest of the year are comfortably in line with our expectations.
Across Informa, our increased scale is helping improve margins, as individual businesses take advantage of shared service centres, new technology developments and existing office space to reduce costs.
We are confident of another successful full year which meets the Board's expectations.
Board changes On 17 July 2007 Tony Foye announced he was stepping down after 20 years in charge of the Group's finances. Tony has been Group Finance Director since the merger of Taylor & Francis and Informa in May 2004. Prior to this he was Finance Director of Taylor & Francis Group plc and instrumental in its successful flotation on the London Stock Exchange in May 1998. Tony will remain in his role and as a member of the Informa plc board in order to achieve a smooth transition of responsibilities, which is likely to be until the end of the current financial year. An external search process is now being initiated for his successor.
Review by Business Stream
Publishing Publishing, at £205.5m accounted for 39% of the first half year revenues. On a pro forma basis this represents an increase of 6%. Over half of the revenue, 62%, is subscription based. Subscription revenues are split approximately 60 / 40 between corporate and academic clients. Had Datamonitor, acquired in July, been part of Informa for the first half of the year, subscription revenues would increase from the current 24% of total revenue to approximately 27% of total revenue. The split between corporate and academic markets would be approximately 70 / 30.
In each of our divisions and markets the successful migration from print based publishing to content which is technology enabled has allowed us to add value through functionality, increased comprehensiveness and speed. This has helped us to widen the sales offering and drive incremental yield as organisations readily access more of our information.
In the Academic division, the successful launch in 2006 of four electronic subject based archives, based on the rich authoritative journals content, has continued well into first half of 2007. Sales of the first four archives, Education, Business, Management and Economics, Chemistry and Physics, are growing well with over $1m in incremental sales for the 2006 period and $4m 2007 year-to-date, including nationwide agreements in Germany and Greece. The next four archives have just been launched and there are more launches planned for the second half of the year.
Digital versions of academic books, e-books, also play an important part in the development of the on-line offering. They are sold through aggregators to the library community as part of 'libraries of information' as well as forming part of the overall multi product online delivery of academic content sourced from books, journals, reference and archive materials. Large parts of the back catalogue and all new titles are converted to build this collection which is now approaching 15,000 titles.
In the Professional division, the good growth in subscription revenues for Informa Professional was driven mainly by online take-up. Expanding from a small base of early adopters our law portal, i-law, has grown significantly in the first half of 2007.
In the Commercial division, Lloyd's MIU, the leader in global maritime information, continued the rollout of the world's largest AIS electronic network in order to track the movement of the world merchant fleet. Combining this with other intelligence and functionality has enabled increased leverage from the information for sale to a wide range of customers.
Products in all Informa publishing divisions are now designed to be media neutral. The venerable title Lloyd's List is a prime example of this. In June this year it unveiled a new design as a full-colour compact broadsheet format with increased content. Maintaining the quality ethic underpinning it since 1734, the redesign was merely the front end of a significant investment in a world-leading media neutral publishing system. We are now migrating all transport magazines and newspapers into the system, so that we will have a large database of highly structured XML content to combine with our data driven products and to allow us to re-purpose content across all our titles and develop their online revenues.
We continue to have very little reliance on advertising revenues, they account for just 3% of total revenue.
Performance Improvement Performance Improvement (PI) at £109.7m accounted for 21% of first half year revenues. On a pro forma basis this represents an increase of 10%.
The PI business is performing well. Communispond, the smallest of the PI brands which had a flat 2006, has turned around and is now producing good top line and strong profit growth.
Robbins-Gioia, the programme management specialists with a significant government client base and the largest of the PI businesses, has seen its $4m investment last year in new solutions development starting to pay-off. Pro forma revenue in the first half year 2007 is 10% ahead of the same point last year and pro forma adjusted operating profit has grown by 14%.
Good growth is being achieved throughout PI as the result of the two pronged investment approach: developing new intellectual property driven product and expanding the international sales force. This is enhanced by two related client drivers: a demand for proof of results and a need for global best practice consistency.
Haagen-Dazs, for example, worked with Forum to improve the business performance of its retail stores by creating an enhanced customer experience. They needed a partner who could help them deliver consistency of best practice globally. Forum worked with them in four major locations - London, France, Hong Kong and Spain - to achieve:
• Same store sales up an average of 13%; • Increased sales per customer by encouraging trading-up/additional purchases; • Top customer satisfaction up 19% (from 55% to 74%); • Employee satisfaction up; staff turnover down;
Haagen-Dazs is now expanding the Forum-led programme to all 640 stores worldwide.
Informa's decision to buy back some PI Asian franchises in order to drive growth is already beginning to pay off. ESI's acquisition and subsequent integration of its Asian distributor and successful launch in India has produced top line growth in Asia 26% ahead of budget. Investment in the EMEA sales force and closer partnering with IIR events sister companies in Dubai and South Africa, have contributed to good top line growth of 38% in EMEA. Total ESI non US revenues are $8m ahead of the same period in 2006.
AchieveGlobal's purchase of its Taiwan and Greater Chinese franchise operation is also producing good results. All of Achieve's wholly owned non-US operations have had a strong start to the year with total revenues increasing by over 88 %. Growth on a pro forma basis of 37% came about as a result of the investment in internationalising the intellectual property and building a global marketing support structure.
The rest of the franchise operations are also showing good growth with actual franchise royalty increased by 18%, despite a reduction in the number of franchise businesses due to acquisition.
In the first half of the year, non-US revenues accounted for 17% of total PI revenues, compared to 10% of revenue produced by IIR prior to the acquisition in July 2005.
Events
Events at £217.3m constituted 40% of first half year revenues. On a pro forma basis this represents an increase of 16%. All regional and vertical markets saw good growth from a focus on growing and extending large scale events, geo-cloning and capturing the Sponsorship and Exhibition opportunities represented by client demand for a proven and targeted audience.
The geo-cloning of events is continuing well. ICBI, the Finance specialists, has been particularly focussed on taking European flagship events and rolling them out in new geographic locations. Funds Europe, now in it 17th year, is Europe's largest mutual funds event, attracting over 1400 participants. In April this year we successfully launched Funds Asia. Its results exceeded expectations.
In the large US conference market, revenues continue to increase by double digit percentages and produce subscription quality operating margins by focusing on growing Large Scale Events domestically and internationally such as the GAIM series of events for the hedge fund market.
GAIMUSA grew through innovation in the form of improved programming content, the use of the personal electronic delegate finder devices, rapid-fire company presentations on the exhibit floor and increased networking time and events. Total revenue at £1.6m was 17% up on prior year.
Prior year international roll-outs continue to gain momentum. For example, in the first half of 2007 IIR held the regional version of its GAIM event in the Cayman Islands for the second year and grew event revenue by 34% to £0.7m.
Informa continues to benefit from the increased requirement of corporate marketing departments for measurable Return On Investment from access to more targeted and proven buying audiences. Sponsorship and Exhibition (SpEx) revenues, events' ancillary revenue stream, in the first half of the year grew on a pro forma basis by 30% compared to the same period last year.
This growth has been consistent in both newer Informa sectors such as Energy and in long-held market leadership positions such as Insurance.
Energy conferences were a major success story for the first half of the year with significantly increased revenues from both SpEx and record numbers of delegates attending the events, most notably the annual London event on Kazakhstan in April. The growth in Energy events looks set to continue with increased focus on alternative supply strategies against a backdrop of sustained high oil prices.
The roll-out of the London Insurance Day Summit to Bermuda was also a success with strong profits in its launch year. A good example of the global geo-cloning strategy, there was a mere 5% delegate overlap between the core and the regional events. This confirms the opportunity to extend the brand further without risking profit dilution of the core flagship event.
In the first half of the year Informa also opened new regional events businesses in China and in Mexico.
Review by Division
Academic & Scientific
Academic & Scientific 2007 2006 Inc Pro forma £'m £'m % % Revenue
STM 90.7 86.2 5 6

HSS 60.5 52.7 15 10

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151.2 138.9 9 7

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Adjusted Operating Profit

STM 24.7 21.2 16 17

HSS 12.7 8.7 45 49

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37.4 29.9 25 27

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Adjusted Operating Margin 24.7 21.5


Revenues increased by 9% to £151.2m in the first half year 2007. On a pro forma basis they increased by 7%. Adjusted operating profit increased by 25% to £37.4m and on a pro forma basis by 27%. Acquisitions including Citeline, Librapharm and LEA contributed £10.9m to revenue and £4.5m to adjusted operating profit.
The subscription mainstay of the business which accounts for almost half its total sales performed strongly in both our Scientific Technical and Medical (STM) and Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) with renewal rates continuing above 95%. Non subscription journal revenue has also improved year on year as new electronic sales models and archive deals are introduced.
In the first half of 2007, Informa produced 203 new books in the STM division and 968 new HSS titles. Revisions and reprints are increasingly being made available as print on demand (POD) which means that orders are fulfilled by books being printed as needed. Innovation and control in the production process enabled us to publish books more quickly and at less cost with first half year savings in excess of £1.7m.
The STM division saw solid profit growth. Its corporate sales had excellent growth across its Pharma business in online subscriptions, particularly for Scrip which have grown by 12% year on year and continue to see an upward trajectory. The acquisition of Citeline and its Trialtrove Global Clinical Trials Database at the end of 2006 has been extremely successful and has increased our penetration of the largest pharmaceutical companies with all of the top 20 Global Pharmaceutical Companies now subscribers to the online service. Connections between Trialtrove and Pharmaprojects, Informa Healthcare's Drug Development Database are being made and the launch of a combined trials and drugs service is planned for Q4.
Events, which contributed approximately 10% of the division's revenues and is made up of the legacy life sciences and pharmaceutical event divisions in IBC and IIR and the exhibition Vitafoods, started the year well. The UK Life Science business in particular had a good first half with revenues up by 21% and adjusted operating profit by 44% driven largely by a focus on higher quality event formats, particularly Large Scale Events, which produced average yield per delegate significantly above last year and the Informa average.
Flagship Large Scale Life Sciences Events such as BioProcess International in the UK and the US events Clinical Trials Congress, Partnering with Central Labs, Drug Delivery and Partnerships with CROs all showed strong growth of both the primary delegate revenue stream and the high margin sponsorship and exhibition revenues.
The Humanities and Social Sciences business which has seen strong revenue growth of 15% is benefiting from the strategic acquisitions made in 2006 and 2007. These have been in core subject areas, including education and the behavioural sciences where the introduction of established titles and lists has brought enhanced market share and growth through cross marketing and selling. Margins have also grown well to 21% from 16.5% at the prior half year, benefiting from acquisition integration savings and the production cost savings mentioned earlier.
Professional
Professional 2007 2006 Inc Pro forma £'m £'m % % Revenue
Performance Improvement 109.7 109.9 0 10

Financial Data Analysis 31.2 32.6 -4 -3