'Serious enquiries' deluge Sembcorp Marine

Enquiries across the board expected to add to the group’s current order book of S$6.6b, said OCBC.

According to OCBC, enquiries for newbuilds remain healthy and the group is seeing interest for various
products, such as semi-submersibles, jack- ups and FPSOs. There are “serious enquiries” from customers which are expected to add to the group’s current order book of S$6.6b (vs. S$5.1b as at end 2011) with deliveries
extending till 2Q15, it added.

Management also reported that construction of its new integrated yard in Singapore is progressing well and operations at two of its docks may start as early as 2Q13 while docks 3 and 4 may commence in early 2H13.

Sembcorp reported a 46.4% YoY rise in 2Q12 in revenue but saw a 4.6% fall in net profit to S$142.8m in 2Q12, such that 1H12 net profit accounted for about 40% of both ours and the street’s full year estimates.

Operating margin improved from 12.8% in 1Q12 to 13.1% in 2Q12 but was lower compared to 2Q11 which registered a high margin of 21.6%.