Further diversification driven by growth in renewables, infra and nautical
In the second quarter, revenue was up by 14.1%; the first increase since the start of the pandemic. Overall, first half-year revenue declined slightly despite growth in the renewables, infrastructure and nautical markets, which now represent 60% of Fugro’s revenue.
Improved EBIT margin for the second quarter and the first half-year, in both the marine and land businesses, resulting from a combination of cost control and second quarter revenue growth.
Free cash flow was negative EUR 52.5 million due to higher working capital mainly resulting from revenue growth, seasonality and an exceptionally low working capital at year-end 2020.
Completion of divestment of non-core subsidiary Seabed Geosolutions for EUR 13.4 million in cash.
The 12-month backlog is up 3.3%, driven by the land business.
Outlook full-year 2021: revenue growth, modest margin improvement and around break-even free cash flow.

Mark Heine, CEO: “During the second quarter, one year after the outbreak of the pandemic, we have returned to growth. This was largely on account of our renewables business, highlighting our leading position and flexibility to shift assets and capabilities to growth markets. In the second quarter, our infrastructure and oil & gas related activities were also up, after a very challenging 2020.

We continue to make progress with our diversification. Currently, 60% of our revenue is generated in renewables, infrastructure and nautical. This is in line with our objective to support clients with the energy transition, climate change adaptation and the development of sustainable infrastructure. For example, we are presently executing services for offshore wind projects for Atlantic Shores in the US and Thang Long in Vietnam, and a cable route survey for Alcatel’s new fibre-optic cable system connecting North America to Asia. In addition, we continue to implement our remote operations, encompassing remote positioning, hydrography and inspection services. For Woodside in Australia, we recently successfully completed our first remote inspection project with an uncrewed surface vessel, which has much lower CO2 emissions and safety risks than a traditional vessel.

Supported by cost reductions implemented over the past quarters and second quarter revenue growth, our margins are up. While there are still Covid uncertainties that impact our business, we expect revenue growth and a modest margin improvement for the full-year. Even though there is still a gap between current performance and our mid-term targets, we are confident that we are back on our Path to Profitable Growth.”