Oslo, 10  August 2009: Norwegian Property ASA (OSE:NPRO, NPRO.OL) reports for the second quarter 2009 strengthened operational cash flow and good cost control. The financial position for Norwegian Property will in addition be improved following the share emission and financial restructuring planned to be executed in Agust/September this year.  In June a private placement of NOK 1,200 million was fully subscribed and the group has renegotiated terms, maturities and covenants requirements for several bank facilities[1]. A repair issue of up to NOK 300 million will as previously announced take place later in August.
 
Highlights for the second quarter 2009:
 
  • Profits before value adjustments in second quarter 2009 were NOK 114.8 million (NOK 70.0 million in second quarter 2008).
  • Profits before income tax and after value adjustments in the quarter were NOK -439.5 million (NOK -1,071.8 million).
  • Fair value adjustments of properties were negative by 2.1 per cent in second quarter 2009, split on a value decrease of 1.3 per cent for office and a value decrease of 3.3 per cent for the hotel properties.
  • Revenues for the group were NOK 446.8 million in second quarter 2009. Adjusted for sale of properties, the level is unchanged compared to the same period in 2008 as the increase in revenues from offices properties offsets the decrease in revenues from hotel properties.  
  • The vacancy rate in the office portfolio is 0.8 per cent at the end of second quarter 2009.
  • Capital expenditure both within office and hotels have been reduced following completion of several larger projects in 2008.
  • Financial costs are reduced from NOK 343 million in second quarter 2008 to NOK 260 million in second quarter 2009.
  • Equity per share is NOK 18.09. Net asset value by EPRA is NOK 23.26 per share.
 
 
 In a comment CEO Petter Jansen said:
"Second quarter 2009 has operationally been a strong quarter for the company. Norwegian Property has in general a portfolio of unique and solid tenants, which secure a good and predictable cash flow with lower maintenance costs than many of our competitors. We are in addition pleased to have succeeded with the capital raising of NOK 1.2 billion in the private placement in June. This will improve our financial standing significantly and secure good results going forward. In addition, Norwegian Property successfully completed renegotiations of terms and conditions for several of the group's loan facilities with our good and close bank relations, which sufficiently provides headroom going forward also on the debt capital side.
 
The markets are still challenging but we do see that the financial situation particularly in Norway is slightly different than in other European countries, entailing e.g. significantly lower unemployment figures and somewhat different recovery scenarios than in other countries. With our predictable cash flow, improved financial standing as well as our strong portfolios of properties and tenants, Norwegian Property is well positioned in the market for the time to come."
 
Please refer to the full Q2 report and presentation material available at www.npro.no and www.newsweb.no.
 
For further information, please contact:
CEO Petter Jansen, +47 900 98 728
CFO Mari Thjømøe, +47 90 77 78 24
Acting IRO Sigmund Sletvold, +47 977 43 143
 
[1] The private placement and the subsequent repair offering are conditional upon the completion of  the par value write-down, where the creditor notice period expires on 25 august 2009, and the private placement are registered as completed in the Norwegian Register of Business Enterprises on or before 30 September 2009
 





1 The private placement and the subsequent repair offering are conditional upon the completion of  the par value write-down and share capital increase to be registered in the Norwegian Register of Business Enterprises on or before 30 September 2009