Irish hub of Amazon sees profits hit €13.6m

Pre-tax profits at the main Irish unit of online retailer Amazon last year almost doubled to €13.6m as revenues climbed 48% to €290.8m.

That is according to accounts filed by Amazon Data Services Ireland Ltd (Adsil), which operates seven separate data hubs in the Dublin area supporting Amazon group websites.

Accounts lodged with the companies office by Adsil and a separate Irish amazon unit, Amazon CS Ireland Ltd (Acsil), based in Cork, show the total numbers of employees at the two firms at the end of December 2013 stood at 1,135. Combined staff costs increased from €41.6m to €57.76m.

Acsil operates a customer service centre in Cork, and the accounts show its pre-tax losses slightly increased to €1.2m despite revenues increasing 25%, from €32.9m to €41.1m.

Figures for the Dublin-based Adsil show its pre-tax profits increased by 98%, from €6.8m to €13.6m, as revenues increased from €196.3m to €290.8m. Administrative expenses rose from €181.8m to €275m.

Established in 2005, accounts for Amazon’s European Systems and Network Operations Centre show its largest single expense was the non-cash depreciation costs of €138.4m on tangible assets, including its data centres. The firm sustained an additional depreciation cost of €15.2m on leased assets.

It incurred building lease costs of €14.7m last year, while director emoluments increased from €298,249 to €467,046.

Amazon has come under fire for the level of tax its main UK arm pays — £2.5m on sales of £4.3bn in 2012.

The accounts for Adsil show it paid corporation tax of €2.85m last year.