Bruce Barnard | May 16, 2011 10:09AM EDT
Fesco, owner of Russia’s largest ocean container carrier, swung to a $456 million net profit in 2010 from a year-earlier net loss of $233 million, largely due to the gain on the sale of a stake in a container terminal company.
Fesco made a profit of $419 million from the sale of its 50 percent shareholding in National Container Co. to an affiliate of First Quantum, an oil trading company that owned the other half of the Moscow-based terminal operator.
Fesco’s revenue jumped $190 million to $800 million primarily due to higher cargo volume and improved freight rates in its ocean shipping, logistics and domestic rail freight businesses.
Group operating profit almost doubled to $173 million and margins improved to 21.6 percent from 15 percent in 2009.
Fesco, which runs the Vladivostok Container Terminal and is a shareholder in Russia’s biggest Far Eastern port, cut debt to $425 million by the end of 2010 from $783 million 12 months earlier.
“We’re very pleased with our performance in 2010 and we are especially proud that strong year results were achieved not only by the profitable sale of our stake in National Container Company but also by successful operational results of all our business units,” said Yury Gilts, Fesco’s vice president and chief financial officer.
Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com.