Abu Dhabi-based Tabreed reported a 3.6 per cent increase of profits for the first quarter despite rising operating and financing costs.
The cooling company’s net income grew to Dh63.4 million during the first three months of the year, compared with Dh61.2m in the first quarter last year.
Revenues for the period grew by 6.7 per cent year-on-year to Dh255.5m.
The company’s international operations, including Qatar’s Pearl Island, the new Avenues Mall in Muscat, Oman, and the Jabal Omar Development Project in Mecca in Saudi Arabia, contributed to nearly a quarter of the company’s profit for the period, according to Waleed Al Mokarrab Al Muhairi, Tabreed’s chairman.
“Over the years, Tabreed has successfully transferred the knowledge and expertise honed in its home market of the UAE to key regional markets, enabling the company to continue to grow its core chilled water business and to deliver stable and consistent results,” he said.
The company’s results came as a disappointment for investors. Tabreed shares, listed on the Dubai Financial Market, ended the day down 0.7 per cent at Dh1.38.
The group’s total cooling capacity across the GCC hit 977,037 refrigerated tonnes (RT) by the end of last month, a year-on-year increase of 2.8 per cent, spread over 69 cooling plants regionally. About 29 per cent of the company’s cooling capacity is dedicated to projects outside the UAE.
Tabreed’s major cooling services customers in the UAE include Abu Dhabi’s Al Maryah Island and Yas Island, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and the Dubai Metro system.
jeverington@thenational.ae
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