Berlin, 30 June 2016: International raw materials supplier HMS Bergbau AG was able to partially compensate for the fall in the price of coal by increasing tonnages in financial year 2015. These figures are taken from the annual report for 2015, which has now been published. The total performance of the group only fell by 8.6 % to EUR 117.6 million (previous year: EUR 128.7 million), while prices on the international coal market fell by roughly 20 % in 2015. Despite this fall in total performance, HMS Bergbau still managed to maintain earnings from ordinary business activities at close to the previous year’s level (EUR 0.7 million, previous year: EUR 0.8 million). As in the previous year, the raw materials supplier generated a profit for the period, of EUR 0.2 million (previous year: EUR 0.6 million).
Total assets rose by 5.7 % to EUR 32.1 million in financial year 2015 (previous year: EUR 30.4 million). The equity ratio improved slightly from 11.0% to 11.9%. Cash and cash equivalents stood at EUR 1.4 million at the end of 2015 (previous year: EUR 2.6 million).
During 2015, HMS Bergbau AG continued its strategy of expanding business activities to include other raw materials such as ore, metals or cement products in 2015. At the same time HMS remains focused on its coal business, in which it is held in high regard across the value chain, from mining to logistics and delivery to customers.
“Complimenting our business activities with other raw materials enables us to meet the requirements of our customers and deploy our operative expertise in the areas of mining, handling and trading,” said Heinz Schernikau, CEO and founder of HMS Bergbau AG, commenting on the strategic orientation of HMS Bergbau AG. “By expanding our business activities, we are able to maximise our capacities, diversify risk even further, boost gross margins and ultimately gain a competitive advantage.”
The raw materials supplier is expected to post another positive result for the financial year 2016. The Management Board finds that the raw materials market will begin to recover from the second quarter of 2016. “The expansion of our business activities and our flexible structures mean that we have been able to successively improve our position on the international market,” said Heinz Schernikau on the outlook at HMS Bergbau AG.
The 2015 annual report of HMS Bergbau AG can now be downloaded on the company website, www.hms-ag.com, under the Financials section.