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Satnews Daily
August 26th, 2012

NewSat... Financially Speaking... (Business)


[SatNews] NewSat Limited (ASX: NWT) is reporting the Company’s performance for the year ending June 30, 2012. The financial highlights include...

  • Revenue from ordinary activities of $37.2 million, up 29 percent from $28.8 million in FY2011
  • Gross Margin of $15.9 million, up 23 percent from $12.9 million in FY2011
  • Positive EBITDA of $3.9 million, up 111 percent on FY2011
  • Net Profit of $2.3 million, up 619 percent from $0.3 million in FY2011
  • Positive operating cash flow of $4.9 million
  • Cash and cash equivalents of $3.8 million

Operational Highlights

  • 306 new teleport business contracts signed during the period with an average value of over $40,000 per annum
  • A number of high profile infrastructure contracts across Australia, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste
  • Monthly Recurring Revenue of the teleport business has increased during the period by 24 percent from $2.5 million per month to $3.1 million per month
  • Growing Monthly Recurring Revenue generated through new contracts (incremental to existing contract base) and high levels of customer retention over the 2012 financial year
  • NewSat’s teleports were rated Top 3 in the world at the World Teleport Associations “2012 Awards for Excellence”
  • NewSat Founder and CEO, Adrian Ballintine, was appointed to the Board of Directors for the World Teleport Association, joining an elite group of international Directors

Jabiru Satellite Program

  • Acquired rights to 7 premium orbital slots for development, as announced to the market in February 2011
  • Acquired the rights to an additional orbital slot and expanded frequencies in the existing 7 slots
  • Signed a total of US$601 million in binding pre-launch customer contracts for Jabiru satellite capacity. Customers include MEASAT, Trustcomm, 3A Technologies and Quicklink Communications
  • Commenced construction of Jabiru-1 by signing contract in December 2011 with Lockheed Martin to build satellite. The Preliminary Design Review phase was completed in June 2012
  • Commenced construction of the satellite launch vehicle by signing agreement in March 2012 with Arianespace and reserving 2014 launch window for Jabiru-1
  • Received final approval from Ex-Im Bank for a ~US$280 million direct loan in July 2012. The funding commitment is subject to customary closing conditions
  • Received a promesse de garantie of US$102.74 million from COFACE, the export credit agency acting on behalf of the French government, in July 2012. The promesse de garantie will be used to support a syndicated debt facility
  • Further funding in the order of ~US$200 million is well progressed in approximate equal parts of mezzanine debt and equity
  • Finalized Jabiru-2 satellite venture with MEASAT in February 2012. Jabiru-2, scheduled to launch in 2013, will further enhance the profitability and growth of NewSat’s core teleport business
  • Continued developmental work on satellites beyond Jabiru-1 and Jabiru-2

Outlook

  • NewSat’s core teleport business continued its strong growth, with significant increases in revenue, gross margin, EBITDA and net profit. The outlook for FY2013 looks very promising, with strong demand for mission critical communications across Australasia, South Asia and the Middle East expected to continue
  • NewSat’s strategic growth project, the Jabiru Satellite Program, continued to achieve key milestones towards the launch of Jabiru-1 in 2014. ~US$380 million in export credit agency debt funding from Ex-Im Bank and COFACE has been secured and further funding of ~US$200 million is well progressed. Demand for Jabiru satellite capacity continues to grow, with binding pre-launch customer contracts now at US$601 million and a future sales pipeline of over US$500 million across the Jabiru fleet

In commenting on the June 30, 2012, year end results, Adrian Ballintine, NewSat Founder and CEO, said, “NewSat’s core teleport business recorded another year of significant growth. Our disciplined focus on high value and growth markets, along with increased productivity and cost control, has enabled the Company to build on and improve all key financial metrics. Our continued focus on service and quality is well respected within the industry, including recognition by the World Teleport Association, by ranking NewSat in the Top 3 independent teleports in the world."