The RHI group met the expectations regarding sales revenue and operating result (EBIT) budgeted in the course of the capital restructuring in Q1/2002.
Despite the globally still weak economic situation, RHI’s core business Refractories developed positively: in Q1/2002, sales revenue amounted to EUR 261.7 million (previous year including USA: EUR 398. 0 million). EBIT came to EUR 23.3 million (previous year: EUR 16.5 million), which corresponds to an increase by more than 40%. RHI thus managed to improve the EBIT margin from 4.1% in the previous year to 8.9% in the first quarter. Following the restructuring and concentration on markets outside the USA, Refractories has thus met the high expectations.
Insulating reported sales revenues in the amount of EUR 36.5 million in the first quarter, which fell short of the figure of the previous year of EUR 46.0 million as a result of changes in consolidation. EBIT was still negative at EUR -1.7 million (previous year: -0.1 million) due to seasonal factors. At EUR 38.1 million, Engineering exceeded the sales revenue level of the previous year of EUR 35.9 million; at EUR -2.6 million (previous year: -1.3 million) EBIT was, as expected, also still negative due to invoicing factors.
RHI’s consolidated sales revenue amounted to EUR 333.3 million in the first quarter of 2002. In the previous year, this figure came to EUR 471,9 million, including the refractories subsidiaries in the USA, which have meanwhile been deconsolidated. The group’s EBIT amounted to EUR 11.6 million (previous year: EUR 10.2 million) in the period under review and thus within the framework of the figures budgeted. Including the payments received from the USA in the first quarter, RHI reduced gross financial liabilities by EUR 110 million to approx. EUR 958 million. Of this amount, RHI has EUR 400 million at its disposal as mezzanine capital (beneficial equity) free of interest and repayment in accordance with capital restructuring.
RHI will publish the complete quarterly report including the change of the quarterly figures from ÖHGB (Austrian Commercial Code) to IAS at its press conference on May 28, 2002.