Liverpool headquartered Bibby Line Group grew revenues by 12.1 per cent to £1,295m (2010: £1,156m) in the year to 31 December 2011.
The diversified group – which has a wide portfolio of interests including shipping, marine services, logistics, financial services and retail – reported record operating profits of £63.8 million (2010: £40.8 million).
The largest contribution to the growth in profit was driven by the group’s offshore business, as the North Sea oil market emerged from a difficult period and saw a resurgence in demand for vessels and services, supported by a strong performance from Bibby Financial Services.
Bibby Financial Services, which provides finance to small and medium sized businesses, posted pre tax profits of £41.2m during the year (2010: £34.8m) while Bibby Offshore overturned a £7m loss in 2010 to record £5.7m profit before tax.
Profits from Bibby Distribution, the group’s logistics business, were £3.8m and although lower than 2010’s record £7m, the company’s performance was resilient during a period in which it bedded in an acquisition and saw a major long standing relationship with Nisa-Today’s end in March 2011.
The group purchased the remaining shares in convenience retailer Costcutter in November and saw its first financial period as sole shareholder end with pre tax profits of £7.7m (2010: £4.4m) with 263 stores joining the fascia franchise offering.
Sir Michael Bibby, managing director of Bibby Line Group , said: “We have adopted a strategy of building a diverse portfolio of businesses and what we saw in 2011 was the unusual situation where nearly every business performed really well, despite challenging economic conditions.
“It is pleasing to note that this level of profitability should be sustainable as it resulted from increased sales rather than profits on the disposal of assets, which has boosted figures in previous years.”
Bibby Line Group’s annual report also highlights the company’s ongoing support for charities and good causes, which saw it receive the Business Charity Employee Engagement award for the group’s CSR work, as well as receiving the 3i Private Business of the Year award at the national Orange business awards.
During 2011, including the group’s match-funding for its ‘Giving Something Back’ campaign, £902,000 was donated by the company and employees to over 350 charitable causes around the world, bringing the total raised since the programme’s inception in 2007 to over £4,200,000.
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Subsea World News Staff , June 19, 2012; Image: Bibby Line