Slovenia's Luka Koper expects 39% drop in profit in 2023

Luka Koper estimates net sales in 2023 to fall by 3% to 302.8 million euro and then rise by 7% to 324.5 million euro in 2024, the company said in a filing with the Ljubljana Stock Exchange on Friday.

Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) in 2023 are foreseen at 49.1 million euro, down 41% on the year and 42% above the plan, while in 2024 it is expected to rise by 3%, Luka Koper said.

In 2023, container throughput will amount to 1.061 million TEUs, up 4%, the transhipment of cars will stand at 893,000 units, up 11%, while total maritime throughput is expected to reach 22.1 million tonnes by the end of 2023, down 5%, the port operator noted.

Luka Koper expects the throughput of containers to amount to 1.093 million TEUs in 2024, 3% more than the estimated turnover in 2023, while transhipment of cars remain unchanged at 895,000 vehicles. The total maritime throughput in 2024 will increase by 2% on the year to 22.6 million tonnes, Luka Koper added.

The company booked a consolidated net profit of 47.5 million euro ($51.8 million) in the first nine months of 2023, down 20% on the year. Consolidated sales revenue amounted to 233.7 million euro in January-September, unchanged from the like period of last year.

Luka Koper handled 16.8 million tonnes of cargo in January-September, down 4% on the year, with dry and bulk cargo declining 13% to 4.0 million tonnes. An overall 7.5 million tonnes of container cargo was processed in the period under review, up from 7.4 million tonnes in the first nine months of 2022.

($ = 0.9135 euro)