The gross operating profit (Ebitda) rose to EUR 218.5 million in the first quarter of the year, which is a 5.1% increase over the same period in 2019. This effect is mainly due to the performance of the environment and water activities and an improved contribution from the Concessions area. In addition, and at a corporate level for the Group, a provision of EUR 20 million is included in the first quarter of the year, relating to the negative effects caused by COVID-19, which began in March and continued from April onwards.

With regard to the performance of Ebitda in the business areas, it should be noted that the Environment area increased 11.6% to EUR 113.8 million due to the sustained contribution in Spain and the increase in international operations. The Water area recorded EUR 62.2 million of Ebitda, 5.6% more than the year before, mainly due to the contribution of the concessions and services activity. Concessions obtained a very substantial increase in Ebitda of EUR 24.5 million compared to EUR 3.6 million in the same period the previous year. The Construction area reached EUR 20.7 million, a reduction of 8.8% compared to the period in 2019. Cement decreased to EUR 9.6 million compared to EUR 14.9 million in 2019. The latter two areas are down on 2019 as these businesses were first impacted by the COVID-19 crisis in March and were particularly exposed by the decline in activity due to the epidemic.

The Group's revenues reached EUR 1,485.4 million in the first quarter of the year, 3.3% more than in the same period of the previous year, due to the increased contribution from the Concessions area following the acquisition of most of the Cedinsa group at the end of last year and with growth in the Water (6.3%) and Environment areas (3%).

The Group's income backlog ended the first quarter at EUR 31,077.6 million, with no significant changes compared to December 2019. By contribution volume Water stands out, accounting for 49.2% of the consolidated total.

At 31 March, almost all of the net financial debt is without recourse and is allocated to the business areas, totalling EUR 3,619.5 million. The parent company's net debt position stands at EUR 98.4 million. 

At the end of the first quarter, the FCC Group's total cash, cash equivalents and available lines of credit amounted to EUR 1,749.8 million and its total short-term financial debt stood at EUR 682.2 million (maturing before 12 months). This represents a volume of over 2.5 times the amount of the existing maturities until 31 March 2021.

Significant events

FCC Aqualia enters into concession agreements in Latin America and boosts its presence in the Middle East

This past March, FCC Aqualia acquired various assets in Colombia, allowing it to provide a comprehensive water management service to more than 450,000 inhabitants across 13 municipalities. Twelve of the concessions were in the Córdoba Department and one was acquired through a public bidding process, the Villa del Rosario concession in the city of Cúcuta. Together, these concessions add up to an income backlog of over EUR 360 million.

Last January, the company boosted its presence in Saudi Arabia by acquiring 51% of two companies belonging a local group, Qatarat Saqia Desalination Company Ltd and Haaisco, totalling EUR 16.1 million. Qatarat is the concession holder responsible for managing the desalination plant at Jeddah airport until 2029, on the Red Sea coast. Haaisco operates several desalination plants, including the one managed by Qatarat. The combined income backlog amounts to more than EUR 180 million.

FCC Environment gives another boost to its presence in the US with two new contracts

The city of Omaha (Nebraska) granted FCC Environmental Services a five-year contract to manage recyclable materials in February. This is addition to two other contracts granted in the same city in 2019, to collect municipal solid wastes (US$ 560 million) and residential green waste. It was also awarded a three-year contract to treat and sell recyclable waste in Huntsville, Texas. Recyclable waste will be processed at the Houston plant. This all means that recycling services will be provided to more than 4.5 million people in the state of Texas and nearly 8.5 million in the country as a whole.

The FCC Group and its different business areas take action to fight Covid 19

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the FCC Group has been in constant contact with the healthcare authorities in the countries in which it operates. One of FCC Group's core values has been protecting and looking after the health of its nearly 60,000 employees at the end of March. However, it is also keenly aware that it is a key provider of many activities considered essential for the proper functioning of cities and the well-being of citizens: street cleaning, waste collection and treatment, comprehensive management of the complete water cycle and management and maintenance of transport infrastructures, to name a few.

Since last March, the company has taken the following actions, grouped by business area:

FCC's Environment area has focused on maintaining essential services in cities, reinforcing personal protective equipment and prioritizing disinfection work with street washers, high-pressure cleaners and fumigators. It has also taken selfless acts, such as disinfecting municipalities that lack resources and joining the corporate campaign #estonotienequeparar in Spain, and donation campaigns such as the one undertaken by municipal selective waste collection workers in Madrid and masks made and donated by female employees who work under the contract with the University of Zaragoza.

In the Water area, FCC Aqualia immediately reinforced its protocols to guarantee the continuity of services and protect employees and customers. Actions included reinforcing all of its telematic customer service channels. It also suspended all water supply cuts, guaranteeing the service for every household. To support the self-employed and other customers, including anyone who is not allowed to open to the public, an estimated consumption of zero cubic meters per day has been applied. Hotels turned into hospitals will not be billed for water consumption either.

FCC Construcción, as part of its hospital projects, has set up medical facilities to absorb the demand for patients with COVID-19. At the medical centres in Palma de Mallorca, it has provided a brigade to disinfect isolated patient rooms and has proposed using a robot to reinforce this work. It has also donated masks in various countries where it operates, including Panama and Romania. In the field of industrial construction and maintenance, teams have been deployed in Spain to guarantee electricity supply to critical facilities in the different cities in which it operates.

With these and other ongoing actions, the FCC Group strives to continue to provided value-added solutions for its customers and society as a whole, more critical than ever at the current juncture caused by COVID-19.

KEY FIGURES