Grupo Dragados earned EUR 109 mln in the first half of the year

The turnover reached EUR 2,554 mln

Grupo Dragados obtained a net profit of 109.4 million euros in the first half of 2002, 9.3% less than the figure for the first half of 2001. The net turnover and combined billing increased 10.6% and 9.6% respectively.

Grupo Dragados expects business ratios to improve during the second half of the year. This, together with the extraordinary income and cost reductions foreseen, will make it possible for the group to meet the net profit forecast for 2002 as reported to the CNMV on June 11th.

The decline in profits during the first half year was because extraordinary profits decreased 15 million euros, ordinary profits were down 15 million euros as a result of activities in Argentina, less was invested in telecommunications operators and the slow-down in the advertising market affected Publimedia´s activities, one of the four business areas of the Services Division. The sale of Grupo Dragados´ shareholding in Jazztel, producing a 6.1 million euro loss, also affected the final profit figure.

Turnover reached a value of 2,554 million euros at the end of the first half of the year. This is 10.6% more than the figure for the same period of the year before. Combined billing was up 9.6% to over 2,747 million euros.

By business areas, the billing for Services increased 17.6% to 694 million euros during the period in question while in the Industrial area it reached 471 million euros, showing a 13.9% rise. Construction grew 8.2% to 1,443 million euros, Real Estate increased 59.4 million euros showing a growth of 8.9% and 71.8 million euros were billed for our Concessions, 32.9% less than the figure for the same period of the year before.

The growth in the activities of the Services Division was mainly because of the rise in port activities and building maintenance and cleaning. The increase in the Industrial Division was largely due to engineering activities and industrial services. In Construction, it was based on the increase in the billing of civil works. However, the decrease in the billing for Concessions was a result of selling the shareholding in ElDorado Airport (Colombia) and the drop in billing in Argentina.

During the first six months of 2002, 920 million euros were invested of which 756 million euros corresponded to the purchase of HBG. The most important other investments were made by the Services Division amounting to 105 million euros mainly used to buy equipment for new contracts in the street cleaning and waste collection and treatment field and in port services and logistics activities.

At the end of the first six months, the net indebtedness of Grupo Dragados amounted to 244.6 million euros, figure that represents 21.8% of the company´s total net worth.

Main new contracts
During the first six months of the year, the most important new contracts of the Construction Division were for the works on the new high speed train lines between Córdoba and Malaga and between Saragossa, Huesca and Canfranc, the main breakwater for the Port of Sagunto, renovation work on beaches in Alicante, Mallorca and Ibiza, the Americo Vespucio Nor-Poniente motorway in Chile, the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Palma de Mallorca and the new 'Satelite' Building terminal area at Barajas Airport in Madrid.

As for the Industrial Division, noteworthy among the new jobs contracted are the construction of the gas pipeline between Arrigoriaga and Barakaldo (Vizcaya), the installation of a centralized traffic control system for the section between Guadalajara and Ariza, turnkey contract for a soda chlorine plant in Algeria, construction of 31 electrical substations in Mexico, equipping of two hospitals in Honduras and supply and installation of the metallic structure for the 'Satelite' Building in Barajas Airport.

Among the most noteworthy new contracts signed by the Services Division during the first six months of 2002 are the street cleaning and solid municipal waste collection jobs in Granollers, Cadaqués, Alcala de Henares and the southern area of Cairo (

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