Irish division of TNT Express admits work environment very challenging

THE Irish arm of international courier firm TNT Express said yesterday that it will be very, very difficult to maintain the performance of recent years as the challenging work environment in Ireland is almost like no other in the present day.

The managing director of TNT Ireland, Ronnie Judge, was yesterday commenting on results for 2009, which show that the company almost doubled its operating profits from €2 million to €3.9m in the 12 months to the end of December 2009.

The Dutch-owned company recorded the 92% increase in operating profits after the company marginally increased its revenues from €45.1m to €46m. The company paid €25m in dividends to its TNT Skypak International (Ireland) Ltd in 2009.

Asked to comment on the company’s 2010 performance, Mr Judge said: “TNT’s accounts for 2010 have still to be signed off by our auditors, so it would be wholly inappropriate to go into any level of detail at this stage.”

The company currently employs 241 employees and Mr Judge added: “However, our overall performance in 2010 was not dissimilar to that of 2009 and the results achieved were due, in no small part, to a sharp focus on working smarter, delivering efficiencies and driving cost out of the business.

“We are obviously working in an especially challenging business environment in Ireland — almost like no other in the present day — and we know it is going to be very, very difficult to maintain the performance levels of recent years.

“For us the export market has been particularly badly affected because companies have been relocating away from Ireland to other areas such as China and Eastern Europe.

Mr Judge said that looking ahead we will continue to serve the requirements of our customers in Ireland by providing the best quality express service.

“At the same time we will seek to explore new opportunities to expand our core activities, including records management and mail rooms,” he said.

The results for 2009 show that the company recorded a 56% drop in pre-tax profits from €9.5m to €4.1m. However, this is largely attributable to the company recording a €6.3m gain through a dividend of the amount received from TNT Retail Express Ireland Ltd.

The directors’ report attached to the accounts states that included in the 2009 return are a full 12 months of the merged company, TNT Retail Express Ltd.

The directors state that in anticipation of a very difficult year in 2009 the company put in place a cost-reduction programme in late 2008, “which enabled the company to reduce costs by 21% in 2009, resulting in the gross profit margin increasing by 8%”.

The dividend payment and the profits generated last year resulted in the company’s accumulated profits decreasing from €33m to €11.5m.