Deferred flotation costs One51 €2.7m

Environmental services and plastics company One51’s deferred IPO earlier this year cost the group €2.7m in related transaction costs.

The Dublin-based company was forced to abort plans of a stock market flotation in April after meeting with resistance from some major shareholders.

The company has not commented on the likelihood of the plan being resurrected since but the uncertainty caused by Brexit is likely to have put it on the backburner for the time being.

In an interim management statement released yesterday, One51 said it had incurred exceptional costs of €3.3m in the six months to the end of June.

Of these costs, €2.7m arose from the deferred IPO.

The company described its performance during the period as being “ahead of expectations” with earnings up 105% at €27.2m.

Revenue increased by 51% to €214.2m while pre-tax profit climbed 37% to €11.3m.

The company’s net debt stood at €146.8m at the close of June compared with €120.3m at the same period the previous year.

The acquisition of Canadian firm IPL in July 2015 was a major factor in the company’s improved results, according to One51 chief executive Alan Walsh.

The effect on the company of the UK referendum result in June remains largely unclear but should become more apparent as the year progresses, said Mr Walsh.

“We have successfully integrated the transformative IPL acquisition into our plastics division,” he said. “That business, which has performed ahead of expectations since acquisition, delivered very strong results during the first half of the year. UK earnings were adversely affected by the fall in the value of sterling in the wake of Brexit.

“Other potential impacts of Brexit are difficult to assess currently but should become clearer in the second half of the year.

“The second half of the year has started satisfactorily across all divisions with a number of significant capital investment projects undertaken in the first half of the year now coming into production.”

The company can boast a number of high-profile investors, including Dermot Desmond.

Mr Desmond reportedly increased his share in the company to approximately 25% earlier this year.

A host of Irish co-ops, including Glanbia, Dairygold, Kerry, and Lakeland, also hold significant investments in the company.

The deferral of the company’s planned IPO came as a blow to Irish farmers who were in line for a significant cash boost, through the co-ops shareholdings, had the proposed flotation gone ahead.