Page 9 - hisdeSAT annual report 2011

PRESENTATION

Letter to shareholders

achieved in terms of both revenue and the improvement of services represented by To this effect, it will be possible for many
operating costs are over and above the the constellation, to achieve greater mar- companies to operate in markets which they
forecasts. ket share than the sum of the satellites in- could not gain access to due to the elevated
dividually, by being able to compete with costs of so doing. Lastly, international co-
The continual improvement in the re- better services against other radar satellite operation is outlined as the optimal means
sults is due, fundamentally, to a commit- constellations. of financing new programmes between
ment to innovation, with the launch of companies and countries and gradually im-
new projects and international expansion To this effect, the company is taking gi- proving the financial dimensions and diver-
with permanent shareholdings in the USA ant strides in its management capacity and sifying the provision of services through in-
and in Canada and a project of technolog- commercialization of available capacities, novation. This is HISDESAT’s commitment to
ical cooperation in Norway, ratified by the through the signature of agreements and the future.
Framework Agreement between HISDESAT contracts which enable us to reduce risks
and the Norwegian Armed Forces, and and face forthcoming decisions with the
which it is anticipated will lead to the con- desirable level of confidence with which to
struction of a new communications satel- guarantee the stability of the company. Juan Antonio del Castillo Masete
lite called HisNorSat, which will be in orbit Chairman of HISDESAT
in 2014. This thereby completes the system In matters pertaining to the control of mar-
of secure communications, with significant itime traffic via satellite, HISDESAT complet-
facilities adapted to the needs of an in- ed its investment in exactEarth, a joint-
creasingly strategic market. venture with the Canadian company COMDEV
06 Dear shareholders, 07 for the development of a constellation of
Also within an international framework, micro-satellites, capable of informing and
During this first year as President of the HISDESAT renewed its agreement with the identifying all vessels with AIS system. This
company, it gives me great satisfaction to Danish Ministry of Defence and signed a year saw the launch of 3 more and service
present this report which reflects our activi- contract with EMAD in Spain for servic- agreements were signed in Australia, Japan
ties and favourable results, fruit of the am- es in 2011 in the operational zone. In the and Singapore, which significantly contrib-
bitious strategic decisions taken in earlier area of earth observation, 82% of the Paz ute towards the safety of traffic on seas and
periods, which have accorded the compa- programme has been completed, both in oceans.
ny a privileged position within the ambit of terms of the satellite as well as the launch-
secure satellite communications, principally er, which is great news for the Spanish Internally, the company continues with its
in the fields of security and defence. space industry, with over 18 companies in- cost containment policy, adapting human,
volved in its development. In addition, the material and structural resources to the de-
Within that environment, characterised by Paz satellite was introduced officially at an velopment calendar of the Earth Observa-
the complex international situation, the re- event which enjoyed the participation and tion Programme and the remainder of ini-
sults of the company have been very satis- support of the Ministries of Defence and In- tiatives currently being undertaken.
factory indeed: revenue through the pro- dustry, Tourism and Trade.
vision of services has exceeded 60 million In short, these achievements reflect the
euros, the net result at year end was up to In this ambit, HISDESAT and Infoterra Ger- success of the Public Private Partnership
22,5 million euros, which represents an in- many, with the approval of the DLR Ger- (PPP) model, which is permitting access to
crease of 2% on the previous year, and in- man Space Agency (owner of the satel- new technologies and boosting markets that
vestments were up to 24 million euros. The lites), continued to work on designing the did not exist or which had very low levels of
EBITDA reached 44,1 million euros and op- most appropriate strategy for both parties development. The civil and defence sectors
erating profit rose to 29,1 million euros, in order that we may cooperate on mat- in the field of technological performance
with a growth of 23,2 per cent over the last ters pertaining to the observation of Earth must join forces and thereby permit and
four years. In short, all economic indicators with radar technology. It is sought, through optimize the dual use of their applications.