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Depa posts Dh104m loss in H1

DUBAI — Depa Ltd on Thursday declared a net loss of Dh103.6 million for the first half of 2010, but said it is in a strong position to pursue growth opportunities.

The interior decorator, which earned a net profit of Dh92 million during the first six months of 2009, said it was impacted on an interim claim relating to the Burj Khalifa project.

“This is an exceptional circumstance, which the management strongly believes is not reflective of the company’s strength and future prospects, and should be resolved in time,” according to a Depa statement.

It said that the management has had to account for expenses related to this interim claim as a project expense, with no related revenue in the first half. Consequently, net profits (excluding the charge and including net provisions) would stand at Dh81 million for the first half, indicating a flat position compared to the same period last year, rather than a net loss position of Dh103.6 million.

The company said despite the ongoing difficult market conditions throughout the first half of the 2010, Depa has performed in line with expectations on an operational level.

“Our underlying business is proving to be resilient in tough economic times. We continue to have a healthy cash position and strong backlog and our ability to win significant projects, in both established and new territories, reflects our strengths, our brand distinction and market leading position,” Mohannad Sweid, chief executive of Depa said.

Depa said it continued to win important and large projects despite the difficult market environment and is in a strong position to pursue future growth 
opportunities.

“We remain well positioned for a recovery and are in discussions with potential clients over exciting new projects in different locations. We will keep on pursuing our diversification strategy which has proven to be very successful and has helped us weather the downturn,” Sweid said.

abdulbasit@khaleejtimes.com