Ebitda for the period was Zlotys 450m, a 6.7% increase compared with Zlotys 422m for the first half of 2018.

The Ebit ratio in the first half of 2019 amounted to Zlotys 102m, a 23.5% decrease. Operating expenses decreased by 1.5% from Zlotys 2.36bn in 2018 to Zlotys 2.32bn in 2019. Unit revenues increased by 9% year-on-year and unit costs by 10% year-on-year.

“The first half of 2019 was generally difficult for our industry because transport dropped and in this context we need to look at our financial results,” says PKP Cargo president, Mr Czesław Warsewicz. “They are worse than a year ago, but 2018 was also unique, as we had even an unprecedented aggregate boom. However, if we look at the results of our group in a broader, multi-year perspective, the first half of 2019 is better than the average for this period.”

The Polish freight market in the first half of 2019 was lower than 2018 in terms of both weight and turnover. PKP Cargo says that while the 55.2 million tonnes of freight transported in the first half of this year was down 7.4% year-on-year, it is still higher than the long-term average of 54.4 million tonnes for the period.

PKP Cargo says the growth dynamics of the key intermodal segment have been maintained.

Freight volumes are expected to increase over the second half of the year, with the investment objectives of the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways and the National Railway Programme expected to boost demand for aggregates.

Total investment from both institutions has so far reached Zlotys 26bn this year, and this is expected to increase to Zlotys 33bn in 2020 and Zlotys 35bn in 2021. PKP Cargo says this indicates a long peak for aggregate transport.

PKP Cargo says the reorganising of Czech rail freight operator Advanced World Cargo (AWT), in which PKP Cargo acquired the remaining 20% stake in October 2017, has resulted in a positive effect on the subsidiary’s financial results.

AWT’s Ebitda in the first half of 2019 amounted to Zlotys 54m, Ebit was Zlotys 8m, and the net result Zlotys 5m.

“This is the result of action we have taken at AWT to improve the functioning of this company,” Warsewicz says. “We reversed the trend from previous years, when from year to year AWT’s financial results deteriorated and the company accumulated more and more losses.”

PKP Cargo carried 4.7 million tonnes of intermodal freight in the first half of 2019, up 6.5% from 4.2 million tonnes in the first half of 2018, 10.3 million tonnes of aggregates and building materials, down 15.3% from 2018, 5.4 million tonnes of metals and ores, down 16.8%, and 24.1 million tonnes of hard coal, down 4.7% year-on-year.