2nd quarter 2008 - need for further improvement

aker yards asa reported an ebitda result of nok 72 million for the second quarter of 2008 for the continuing operations, up ｆrom nok ﹣162 million in the same period last year. for the first half of 2008 aker yards had an ebitda result of nok 282 million. earnings per share (eps) were nok ﹣0.48 for the quarter ａnd nok ﹣0.10 for the first half of 2008. with the deliveries of another three ferries during the quarter, the ｅxecution of the ferry orderbook in finlａnd is progressing as planned.
in the second quarter of 2008, aker yards＇ continuing operations had revenues of nok 7 922 million, an increase of 31.4 percent compared with nok 6 027 million in the corresponding period of 2007. the ebitda result for the second quarter was nok 72 million, giving an ebitda margin of 0.9 percent. the ebitda result in the quarter is negatively influenced by an ongoing project within offshore &﹔ specialized vessels. the project, consisting of a series of ten vessels, has suffered ｆrom late ａnd poor quality deliveries ｆrom sub suppliers affecting the results for 2008. further, one﹣off ｃharges of a total of nok 90 million in other operations have affected the ebitda result in the quarter negatively. revised guidance for 2008 is an expected ebitda margin for aker yards of two to three percent.
for the first half of 2008, revenues were nok 15 393 million, an increase of 19.3 percent compared with nok 12 900 million in the same period of 2007. the ebitda result was nok 282 million, compared with nok 297 million in the corresponding quarter of 2007. the ebitda margin for the first half of 2008 was 1.8 percent.
earnings per share (eps) were nok ﹣0.48 in the quarter, compared with nok 1.97 in the same period in 2007. for the first six months of 2008, eps were nok ﹣0.10, compared with nok 4.11 in the same period in 2007.
order intake was nok 592 million in the quarter ａnd nok 1 462 million for the first half of 2008, giving an order backlog of nok 55 211 million comprising 92 vessels at the end of the period.
in june, stx norway as acquired 1 318 350 shares in aker yards asa, taking their total shareholding to 45 883 710 shares. as a consequence of this acquisition, a mａndatory offer to acquire all remaining aker yards shares was launched by stx norway as on 18 july 2008.
after the end of the reporting period, aker yards ａnd flc west completed the transaction announced in march in which flc west comes in as a 70 percent shareholder in three shipyards in germany ａnd ukraine. the transaction strengthens aker yards＇ liquidity, ａnd improves the potential for further development of the three involved yards. the final transaction price is eur 248.9 million, providing a net gain for aker yards of nok 800 to 850 million compared to book value. the completion of the transaction will affect the third quarter results.
please find enclosed the full version of the second quarter ａnd first half year report for 2008 ａnd a summary in norwegian.