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Sponda uudisti limiittinsä, seuraavat lainat erääntyvät keväällä 2011

Filed Under: Sponda by pietrox — Leave a comment
27/04/2009

Sponda Oyj on jatkanut yritystodistusohjelmansa varaohjelmana olevia luottolimiittisopimuksia 12 ja 24 kuukaudella eteenpäin. Sopimuksia jatkettiin nykyisten luotonantajien kanssa siten, että 150 milj. euroa erääntyy 12 kk:n päästä ja 100 milj. euroa erääntyy 24 kk:n päästä.

Kurssi nousi tiedotteen jälkeen 10.8%. 80 miljoonan euron laina vastaa noin 4% korollisista veloista.

Lisäksi Sponda solmi sopimuksen 82 milj. euron vakuudellisesta luotosta Helaban (Landesbank Hessen-Thűringen Girozentralen) kanssa. Luotto on 5-vuotinen ja sillä varmistetaan vuonna 2010 erääntyvien joukkovelkakirjalainojen uudelleenrahoitus. Lainasopimus vahvistaa Helaban toimintaa pohjoismaisilla markkinoilla.

Luottojen marginaalit vastaavat nykyistä markkinatasoa. Lainajärjestelyillä ei ole oleellista vaikutusta Spondan rahoituskuluihin. Lainojen kovenantit vastaavat Spondan muiden lainojen kovenantteja, joista keskeiset on sidottu omavaraisuusasteeseen ja korkokatteeseen. Nyt tehtyjen lainajärjestelyjen jälkeen Spondalla ei ole muita pitkäaikaisia luottoja, jotka erääntyvät ennen kevättä 2011.

via Sponda / www / Suomeksi / Media / Tiedotteet / 2009.

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Stora Enso Will Leave Without Plant

Filed Under: Pöyry by pietrox — Leave a comment
27/04/2009

The project of building new pulp and paper mill in Nizhny Novgorod Russia has postponed for 2 years.

Despite the best efforts of Nizhny Novgorod authorities, the Finnish-Swedish company Stora Enso postponed for two years a final decision about the construction of Pulp and Paper Mill, valued at about 1.5 billion euros. According to the Governor of Nizhny Novgorod region, Valery Shantsev, even though the project has already received the status of prior project in the region, the company management totally refused not only to postpone the proposal but also to continue the preparatory work. According to experts, the decision of Stora Enso seems to be a justifiable act in terms of falling pulp and paper market.

Stora Enso was founded in 1998 while the merger of Swedish Mining and Forestry company Stora and Finnish forestry company Enso-Gutzeit Oy. It has 85 production assets in 35 countries with capacity of about 12.7 million tons of paper and cardboard per year. In Russia, it owns paper packaging factories in Arzamas Nizhny Novgorod Region, Balabanova Kaluga region and Luhovicy Moscow region, as well as sawmills in the Novgorod region. The main shareholders are the Government of Finland 12% stake, Finnish and Swedish institutional investors 24%, and 12.8% of the ADR owners. In 2008 revenues amounted to 11 billion euros and net profit – 388.4 million euro.

Valery Shantsev said that the decision to postpone the project for two years due to the financial crisis has been adopted by Shareholders of Stora Enso. “We have explained that they can take a decision on the construction, but to postpone the start of the project, – quotes the Governor. – But they do not want to do this”. In Stora Enso the intention to postpone the construction is confirmed referring to the earlier statement that the work on the project will continue.

The construction of Pulp and Paper Mill capacity of 500 thousand tons of coated paper in the year declared by Stora Enso and the leadership of the Nizhniy Novgorod region in 2007: it was signed an agreement of intent, and the Russian Federation Ministry of Industry received papers on attribution of the priority of the project. By July 2009, Stora Enso was to determine the site for the plant, which area would be about 300 hectares.

Market participants still hampered to predict the fate of the Pulp and Paper Mill project. According to the director Alexander Utevsky, Syassky PPM, the Stora Enso has been fully justified. “Build the plant for two years, to run it and work at the deaf market had no sense, he said. On the other hand, the pulp market is quite mobile, and it is possible the project will be relevant again in some time”.

via Stora Enso Will Leave Without Plant.

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Scania Q1 demand collapses, pretax plunges 95 pct

Filed Under: PKC Group by pietrox — Leave a comment
27/04/2009

* Q1 pretax profit 164 million SEK vs 3.52 billion y/y

* Low market activity in nearly all markets

* No recovery seen in coming quarters

* Says negotiating 4-day working week with Swedish unions (Adds CEO comments, updates share price)

By Niklas Pollard and Victoria Klesty

STOCKHOLM, April 27 (Reuters) – Truck maker Scania (SCVb.ST) posted a bigger-than-expected fall in first-quarter pretax earnings on Monday, hit by plunging vehicles markets, and said it expected demand to remain weak in the coming quarters.

The Swedish company reported a pretax profit of 164 million Swedish crowns ($19.96 million) versus year-ago earnings of 3.52 billion and the mean forecast for a 437 million profit seen in a Reuters poll of 16 analysts.

The company said that in addition to recent job cuts it planned to reduce capacity further by shortening the working week at its plants in Sweden.

Demand for trucks has collapsed under the weight of the global financial crisis and ensuing economic downturn, leaving European makers of commercial vehicles scrambling to slash costs and capacity built up during years of booming sales.

Shares in Scania turned positive in the afternoon after an initial fall, trading 0.9 percent higher by 1235 GMT, outperforming the broader market .

“The results were a little bit worse than expected, but order intake was actually a shade stronger than I had expected,” said an analyst who asked not to be identified.

Scania’s arch-rival Volvo (VOLVb.ST) last week reported a 4.5 billion crown operating loss and cut its market forecasts. [ID:nLO690029]

Volvo also reported a negative cash flow of more than 15 billion crowns, while Scania’s stayed positive at 874 million crowns compared with 1.69 billion a year earlier.

“Falling vehicle deliveries and substantially lower capacity utilisation pulled down earnings,” Scania said.

“Practically all markets where Scania has operations are characterised by low economic activity due to the turbulence in the financial markets and its impact on the real economy.”

Scania Chief Executive Leif Ostling said he thought Volvo’s forecast that the European truck market will more than halve this year compared to 2008 was a reasonable estimate.

“It will probably be in that ball park”, Ostling told Reuters on the sidelines of a news conference. “Whatever the case, it will be dramatic.”

He added he saw demand in Eastern Europe, including Russia and Ukraine, falling by 70 to 75 percent this year.

ORDER DROUGHT

Scania, which only last year reported its best annual operating earnings ever, said order bookings of trucks and bus chassis fell 70 percent year-on-year in the quarter. In its key West European market alone, orders of trucks plunged 78 percent.

“At present, Scania foresees no change in the demand for vehicles in the coming quarters,” the company said.

Scania, majority-controlled by Germany’s Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) after a $4 billion deal last year, said sales fell to 15.9 billion crowns from a year-earlier 22.0 billion to come in above the 15.5 billion seen by analysts.

“If one wants to look for positives, the total order intake came in better than expected,” Handelsbanken analyst Hampus Engellau said.

Like its bigger peers, Scania has had to slam on the brakes at its truck plants but has so far only shed staff on temporary contracts.

“Most of the 2,000 production employees with fixed term temporary contracts have left the company, a reduction to 10,000 employees in the production units and working hours have been reduced to mainly daytime shifts,” Scania said.

“Scania has postponed various investments, mainly in production, and has carried out a reduction in the number of outside consultants.”

Scania said it had plans for further capacity reductions, and was negotiating a new cost-saving scheme with Swedish unions.

“What we now has put on the table is to go for a four-day working week,” Ostling told a news conference. “Provided we reach an agreement with the unions, we get an immediate effect.”

He added the four-day working week was likely to be in effect for 6-12 months and that the capacity reduction would be equal to that generated by more than 1,000 people leaving the company. (Additional reporting by Johannes Hellstrom, Oskar von bahr and Love Liman; Editing by Rupert Winchester)

via UPDATE 3-Scania Q1 demand collapses, pretax plunges 95 pct | Reuters.

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Tiimarin suunnattu anti ylimerkittiin hieman, merkintähinta 1.25 euroa

Filed Under: Tiimari by pietrox — Leave a comment
24/04/2009

Tiimari Oyj Abp:n ”Yhtiö” hallitus päätti 23.4.2009 varsinaisen yhtiökokouksen 7.4.2009 antaman valtuutuksen nojalla laskea liikkeeseen 5.175.535 uutta osaketta ”Osakkeet”. Tarjottavaa määrää korotettiin ylimerkinnän johdosta 20.000 osakkeella.

Osakkeet tarjottiin Nordea Corporate Finance:n järjestämässä book-building -tarjousmenettelyssä 20.4. – 23.4.2009 välisenä ajanjaksona alle sadan sijoittajan merkittäväksi. Tarjousmenettelyn tuloksen perusteella hallitus päätti Osakkeen merkintähinnaksi 1,25 euroa ja vahvisti osakeannin lopulliset ehdot.

Merkintäetuoikeudesta poikettiin yhtiön taseen ja rahoitusaseman vahvistamiseksi osakemarkkinoiden epävarmuuden huomioon ottavalla mahdollisimman nopealla ja kustannustehokkaalla tavalla.

via TIIMARI OYJ ABP:N SUUNNATTU OSAKEANTI – OSAKEANNIN HINNOITTELU, LOPULLISET EHDOT JA OSAKEANNIN TULOS.

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New schedule for straw mill in France

Filed Under: Pöyry by pietrox — Leave a comment
24/04/2009

BRUSSELS, April 24, 2009 (RISI) – French biomass research organization Compagnie Industrielle de la Matière Végétale (CIMV) has announced schedule changes for the construction and startup of a pulp mill in Vitry-le-François, central France, that will run exclusively on straw.

The project, which is a joint venture with European agriculture group Champagnes Céréales, was due to see production begin late this year or early next year. However, due to financing issues at the banks supporting the project, the purchase of the Vitry-le-François real estate did not roll out until very recently, and construction there will not begin until September. Production is now due to start in July 2011.

The facility will consume some 180,000 tonnes/yr of straw and employ about 130 people. CIMV puts its costs at about Euro 130 million ($170 million). The organization did not comment on the mill’s potential capacity, though local media have estimated it at around 60,000 tonnes/yr.

CIMV, which sees the mill as a step toward the international marketing of its biomass and pulp making technologies, will take care of the basic engineering. Champagnes Céréales will ensure the raw material supply.

via RISI.

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WRAPUP 1-Volvo, Valeo post losses; industry data bleak

Filed Under: Componenta, PKC Group, Transportation by pietrox — Leave a comment
24/04/2009

* Volvo Q1 operating loss 4.53 billion Swedish crowns

* European truck sales down 32.9 pct in March

* UK car production falls 51.3 pct in March

* Volvo down 5.0 pct; Valeo down 1.8 pct

By Niklas Pollard and Helen Massy-Beresford

STOCKHOLM/PARIS, April 24 (Reuters) – Swedish truck maker Volvo (VOLVb.ST) and French car parts maker Valeo (VLOF.PA) posted first-quarter losses on Friday, as European industry data underlined the scale of the crisis engulfing the sector.

Volvo posted a larger-than-expected operating loss of 4.53 billion Swedish crowns ($549.1 million) for the period, also cutting its market outlook, while France’s Valeo pledged to step up cost-cutting after a Q1 operating loss of 66 million euros ($86.93 million). [ID:nLO690029]

“We knew that (Volvo’s) figures would be bad. The question was only if they would be really, really bad, and they were,” Cheuvreux analyst Patrick Sjoblom said.

“The financial services business is also heading downhill faster than I had expected,” Sjoblom added.

Volvo shares were down 5.0 percent in late morning trade, compared with a DJ Stoxx European Autos index .SXAP up 0.99 percent. Valeo shares were down 1.8 percent.

“Obviously those are levels of loss that are not sustainable. We cannot stay there,” said Chief Executive Leif Johansson, referring to the operating loss. “We have in the quarter had to make, and will continue to make, dramatic reductions in production capacity.”

The challenge facing Volvo — the world’s second largest truck maker — was underlined by industry data showing that new commercial vehicle sales in Europe plunged 32.9 percent in March and 35.6 percent in the first quarter as a whole. [ID:nLO329628]

COLLAPSE IN DEMAND

In a major setback after years of robust sales, the global financial crisis and ensuing collapse in demand for heavy-duty trucks has left Volvo and its peers in the European truck industry struggling to slash capacity and costs.

The doldrums encountered by the heavy-duty truck makers are only a shade less severe than those experienced by the auto industry, where the likes of Chrysler [CBS.UL] and General Motors (GM.N) are struggling to survive. [ID:nLN620342]

Volvo, which manufactures heavy-duty trucks under the Renault (RENA.PA), Mack, Nissan Diesel (NSNDF.PK) and Eicher (EICH.BO) brands, as well as its own name, said order bookings in the quarter slumped 65 percent in the quarter, with a drop of 71 percent in its key European market alone.

Volvo said it expected European heavy-duty truck demand to be slashed by at least half this year, having previously forecast a 30-40 percent decline.

Meanwhile in France, first-quarter losses and a bolstered cost-reduction plan at Valeo underlined the severe problems the slump in demand for cars is causing suppliers.

Valeo first-quarter sales fell 33.4 percent to 1.624 billion euros, but the group’s new CEO Jacques Aschenbroich said he expected the second quarter to perform in line with the month of March, when scrapping incentives — cash bonuses paid to drivers who trade in old models for new — introduced by several governments had some early positive effects on car sales. [ID:nLO176593]

In the UK, March car production fell 51.3 percent year-on-year, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said on Friday. [ID:nLO628237]

The UK on Tuesday announced plans to boost the flagging car industry with a scrapping incentive scheme while on Friday Chancellor Angela Merkel said there would be no extension to Germany’s car-scrapping scheme. [ID:nLM73572] [nBAT002865]

Friday’s figures show that urgent action is needed to kick-start demand, and the scheme is “an important first step”, SMMT Chief Executive Paul Everitt said.

European sector consolidation remained in focus, with an Opel board member saying Magna International (MGa.TO) would be welcome as an investor in the German unit of GM, which is being spun off with the UK’s Vauxhall Motors, and seeking outside investors. [ID:WEA8266]

Armin Schild, a senior labour leader and Opel supervisory board member speaking on German television poured scorn on the idea of a Fiat bid for Opel.

“We have had experience of working with Fiat — this experience has been extraordinarily bad,” he said referring to the acrimonious end of an alliance between Fiat and General Motors in 2005. [nLO260277]

A spokesman for Germany’s economy ministry said on Friday that the government had been holding talks with investors interested in Opel for some time. ($1=8.249 Swedish crowns) ($1=.7592 euros) (Additional reporting by Victoria Klesty, Matthias Blamont, Michael Shields, Peter Dinkloh, Avril Ormsby; editing by Mike Nesbit)

via WRAPUP 1-Volvo, Valeo post losses; industry data bleak | Deals | Private Capital | Reuters.

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ACEA – March Truck registrations -44%

Filed Under: Componenta, PKC Group, Transportation by pietrox — Leave a comment
24/04/2009

In March, new heavy truck registrations were down 43.7% to 16,792 units in Europe*. In Western Europe, registrations dropped by 38.5% reflecting a downturn across the board, varying from -16.4% in Germany to -30.3% in France, -46.4% in the UK, -47.6% in Italy, -58.7% in the Netherlands and -73.0% in Spain. In the new EU Member States, results dropped by 70.5%. Poland remained the largest market, although down 69.1%.

Three months into the year, the effect of the economic crisis added up to a minus of 41.5%, with a 75.5% decrease in Spain, 69.4% in Poland, 45.4% in the UK, 38.2% in Italy, 31.9% in the Netherlands, 29.5% in France, 29.3% in Germany and 21% in Belgium.

via ACEA – European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.

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EUWID: Machine builders have faced a sharp drop in order intake since end of 2008

Filed Under: Forest, Raute by pietrox — Leave a comment
23/04/2009

(23 April 2009)

German manufacturers of wood processing machinery have witnessed a substantial downturn in order intake in recent months. A number of companies said that ordering had plunged to an unexpectedly strong degree in the final quarter of last year after remaining largely satisfactory until the autumn of 2008. This downturn had intensified during the course of the first few months of this year, too. The wood processing machinery sector had fared much worse than the machinery construction industry as a whole.

via EUWID: Machine builders have faced a sharp drop in order intake since end of 2008.

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Budget 2009: Civils contractors fear post-2012 spending crash

Filed Under: Pöyry by pietrox — Leave a comment
23/04/2009

The Civil Engineering Contractors Association has warned that the 2009 Budget has failed to stem growing concerns among contractors that public spending will drop dramatically early next decade leading to an infrastructure “investment crunch”.

The Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) has previously highlighted the possibility that once the fiscal stimulus period ends in 2010-2011, that public spending will decline sharply.

Projected current and capital budget figures in the 2009 Budget Report show spending will fall by over £10bn between 2010-11 and 2013-14.

Chancelor Alistair Darling has pegged capital spending to 1.25% of GDP post-2012.

Commenting, Rosemary Beales, CECA Director said: “An investment crunch is a serious concern for the civil engineering industry.

“We are currently experiencing a decline in workload across much of the sector and it is hoped that the during the period of fiscal stimulus, this situation will improve. However contractors need confidence about the medium to long term prospects for workload.

“The Government needs to put forward meaningful long term plans in infrastructure investment to boost contractors’ confidence. The industry is not asking the Government to spend more on infrastructure at the expense of other services, but they must set out clear, comprehensive and costed plans for investment and ensure that workload will flow consistently for the foreseeable future.

“Without clear long term planned investment and a consistent flow of work, the next decade would seem to consist of wasteful stop/start spending at a time when the country can ill afford inefficiency in the procurement of essential infrastructure.”

via Budget 2009: Civils contractors fear post-2012 spending crash | Online news | New Civil Engineer.

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Retail Real Estate Investment Down in Continental Europe in Q1

Filed Under: Sponda by pietrox — Leave a comment
22/04/2009

But Low Vacancy Rates Keep Prime Schemes in Demand amongst Investors

London, 22nd April 2009 – Direct retail real estate investment in Continental Europe totalled €980 million in the first quarter of 2009, 37% down on the previous quarter (€1.5bn), according to new research from Jones Lang LaSalle. Western Europe accounted for the vast majority (89%) of transaction volumes as European investors are increasingly focusing on their home markets. The proportion of retail investment volume accounted for by domestic investors has increased from one third in 2008 to over half in Q1 2009.

Jeremy Eddy, Director European Retail Capital Markets, Jones Lang LaSalle said: “Investors continue with their ‘wait and see’ strategies in Continental Europe, with most markets seeing some fall in prices in the first quarter. At the same time, the high cost and lack of access to finance continues to restrict market liquidity, particularly for larger transactions. There is demand for prime product in the best locations and low vacancy rates in many top schemes provide the secure long-term income that investors seek.”

Italy and Germany were the most active markets in Continental Europe, accounting for 31% and 28% respectively of total transaction volumes. In Italy two deals over €100 million were completed: the Barberino Designer Outlet centre and the Centro Rondo shopping centre in Monza, while Germany was the most active market in terms of the number deals – nine completed in Q1. Investment into Central and Eastern Europe was quiet, due in part to the lack of domestic investors in these markets.

Shopping centres were the prime target for investors but accounted for just over one third of the total volume transacted, compared with 55% in 2008, reflecting the lack of prime product on the market and the difficulty in raising finance for funding larger transactions. Nevertheless, shopping centres with strong defensive qualities in terms of location, scale, tenant covenant and quality remain a key target for investors in 2009. Factory outlet centres, accounting for 26% of transaction volumes, were also a target in Q1, as Henderson and Neinver consolidated their outlet portfolios.

In comparison, transaction volumes in the UK totalled of €1.3 billion in the first quarter – up 54% on Q4 2008, although the sale of a 50% stake in the Meadowhall shopping centre accounted for almost half (48%) of this volume. Investor interest in the UK market is increasing following a sharp outward movement in yields, but this re-pricing does reflect on-going concern about rising vacancy rates even in prime locations.

Turning back to Continental Europe, Jeremy Eddy concluded: “We expect that as the year progresses and buyer and seller expectations are increasingly aligned and the market moves towards fair value that transactions will be forthcoming. Two major drivers to this will be the realisation of valuation markdowns and a restricted return of liquidity from the banking sector.”

Notes to Editors

This research considers all investment sales of shopping centres, retail warehouses and factory outlet centres in Continental Europe. Our analysis excludes the UK & Irish markets, the high street and any investment deal less than €5 million in value.

via Uutiset. Jones Lang LaSalle.

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