Vestas generated revenue of € 1,105 million in the first quarter of 2012 – an increase of 4 per cent to the year-earlier period. EBIT before special items declined by € 135 million to € (204) million. The EBIT margin before special items was (18.5) per cent. After special items of € 41 million, EBIT was € (245) million.
The free cash flow improved to € (295) million from € (431) million in the first quarter of 2011. The net debt at 31 March 2012 amounted to € 850 million; an increase of € 305 million during the quarter. The intake of firm and unconditional orders was 1,269MW in the first quarter of 2012 and the backlog of firm and unconditional orders amounted to € 10.0 billion at 31 March 2012. In addition to the order backlog, Vestas had service agreements with contractual future revenue of € 4.2 billion at the end of March 2012. Monitoring data from Vestas’ Performance and Diagnostics centres have shown that 376 V90-3.0MW gearboxes delivered to Vestas from June 2009 to September 2011 may potentially need additional maintenance, repair or replacement due to malfunctioning bearings. Thus, additional provisions of € 40 million have been made in the quarter. Vestas will pursue all relevant actions with regards to potential compensation from the suppliers. Vestas retains its full-year guidance of an EBIT margin of 0-4 per cent, revenue of € 6,500-8,000 million, a positive free cash flow, shipments of approx 7GW and investments of € 550 million. Due to the additional provisions made for the V90-3.0 MW gearboxes, warranty provisions for the year are now expected to be around 3 per cent of the expected full-year revenue, against the previous guidance of less than 3 per cent of full-year revenue. Vestas continues the adjustment of the organisation and still expects the number of employees at year-end to be around 20,400. This will contribute to a fixed cost reduction of more than € 150 million with full effect as from the end of 2012. During the third quarter of 2012, Vestas will make a decision on its future footprint in the US market in case the PTC scheme is not extended. The development of the V164-7.0MW turbine, continues; however, to align the expected serial production date with Vestas’ current offshore market outlook, Vestas has reduced the pace of development. The prototype is now expected to be installed in Denmark during 2014.
The free cash flow improved to € (295) million from € (431) million in the first quarter of 2011. The net debt at 31 March 2012 amounted to € 850 million; an increase of € 305 million during the quarter. The intake of firm and unconditional orders was 1,269MW in the first quarter of 2012 and the backlog of firm and unconditional orders amounted to € 10.0 billion at 31 March 2012. In addition to the order backlog, Vestas had service agreements with contractual future revenue of € 4.2 billion at the end of March 2012. Monitoring data from Vestas’ Performance and Diagnostics centres have shown that 376 V90-3.0MW gearboxes delivered to Vestas from June 2009 to September 2011 may potentially need additional maintenance, repair or replacement due to malfunctioning bearings. Thus, additional provisions of € 40 million have been made in the quarter. Vestas will pursue all relevant actions with regards to potential compensation from the suppliers. Vestas retains its full-year guidance of an EBIT margin of 0-4 per cent, revenue of € 6,500-8,000 million, a positive free cash flow, shipments of approx 7GW and investments of € 550 million. Due to the additional provisions made for the V90-3.0 MW gearboxes, warranty provisions for the year are now expected to be around 3 per cent of the expected full-year revenue, against the previous guidance of less than 3 per cent of full-year revenue. Vestas continues the adjustment of the organisation and still expects the number of employees at year-end to be around 20,400. This will contribute to a fixed cost reduction of more than € 150 million with full effect as from the end of 2012. During the third quarter of 2012, Vestas will make a decision on its future footprint in the US market in case the PTC scheme is not extended. The development of the V164-7.0MW turbine, continues; however, to align the expected serial production date with Vestas’ current offshore market outlook, Vestas has reduced the pace of development. The prototype is now expected to be installed in Denmark during 2014.