Between 1 April 2009 and 30 September 2009, Alstom registered order intake of AUD 11.6 billion, down from the record level of the first six months of the previous year. Over the same period, sales (AUD 15.8 billion) and income from operations (AUD 1.35 billion) continued to grow, up respectively by 8% and 19%. The operating margin reached 8.6% as compared to 7.8% last year. The net result amounted to AUD 916 million (+7%), whilst the free cash flow decreased to AUD 125 million due to the sharp drop in orders received.

“The first half of 2009/10 was characterised by a low order intake both in Power and Transport Sectors. Customers in power generation continue to delay their investments in new power plants, whilst orders in Transport over the first six months have been impacted by the phasing of large contracts. However the backlog remains healthy and continues to provide strong visibility. Overall project execution is under control, as illustrated by the good progression in both volume and profitability. Despite fluctuations of working capital, which deteriorated over the period due a book-to-bill ratio of 0.74, the Group has managed to generate a positive free cash flow. Given the current active tendering activity, we expect orders to improve in the second half of the fiscal year and we confirm our operating margin estimate for March 2010 at around 9%.”, said Patrick Kron, Alstom’s Chairman & Chief Executive Officer.

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