DEVELOPER KEN Rohan’s Airspace investments wrote down the value of its properties by €19 million in 2008, leaving it €13.4 million in the red at the end of its last financial year.
Airspace owns the Grand Canal Plaza office complex in Dublin, which houses BT Ireland’s HQ.
It also has stakes in a number of business parks around the capital as well as a range of other interests in Ireland, Britain and elsewhere.
The latest accounts filed by the company and its subsidiaries show that turnover fell by more than 40 per cent in the 12 months to November 30th, 2008 to €38.5 million from €63.8 million.
The accounts show that the directors decided to write down the value of the company’s development land, stocks and work in progress – its property portfolio – by €19 million.
The company had profits before tax of €8.6 million, a 75 per cent fall on the €36.9 million reported in 2007. Its profit for the financial year was €7 million, just over 20 per cent of the €32 million surplus it earned 12 months earlier.
However, it had to recognise a loss of €13.4 million at the end of last November. The biggest contributor to that was the revaluation of its properties.
The accounts state that the value of these properties on November 30th was €48.8 million.
They point out that the economic climate and the downturn in the property market created uncertainty about the carrying value of the assets, and point out that the directors wrote down their values where they thought appropriate.
“The directors are satisfied that the estimated net realisable value of development land, stocks and work in progress is not less than its carrying value,” the accounts add.
The company paid a dividend of €1.94 million to shareholders. Mr Rohan holds the bulk of the company’s issued shares. The payment is around 40 per cent down on the €3.2 million paid at the end of 2007. The figures show that a near halving of the value of property sales in 2008 was the chief cause of a the fall off in turnover.
Revenues from property sales dropped to €29.2 million in the 12 months to November 30th from €55 million. Rental income was up at €9.3 million in 2008 from €9 million the previous year. The bulk of the turnover, €37.8 million, came from the Republic of Ireland, with around €700,00 generated in the UK and Barbados.
Airspace paid its directors, Mr Rohan, Monica Daly, Thomas Cryan and Jamie Rohan, a total of €824,561 in salaries, slightly up on the €812,627 they received in 2007. Staff costs were €2 million.
The group had net debt of €49 million at the end of the year, and over €28 million in cash. The directors point out that the company’s net debt/gearing ratio is 28 per cent, which they described as conservative.
The balance sheet remained strong. Net assets fell less than 10 per cent over the 12-month period to €150 million at the end of its 2008 financial year from €163 million in 2007. Cash increased by €3 million over the course of the year, against €18 million in 2007.
The directors’ report states that they consider the results for 2008 to be satisfactory and in line with expectations.
The directors also point out that the previous year’s results were exceptional as the group completed a large number of developments during that period.
