Stobart Group enjoys considerable progress over last year

Carlisle based Stobart Group said in a trading statement it has made considerable progress over the last year.

The firm was involved in a bruising boardroom battle last year which ended in its former chief executive sacked from the board and a long-running legal battle.

But the aviation, energy and civil engineering group, said it has seen good progress in a trading update issued prior to the publication of its interim results for the six months to August 2019.

The group said it is trading in line with market expectations and continues to make strong commercial progress in its two core divisions aviation and energy.

Passenger numbers at London Southend Airport increased by 42% in the six months to 31 August 2019, compared to the same period last year.

The growth was driven by the start of Ryanair flights in April, Loganair flights in May and the continued successful growth of easyJet.

Access was further improved by the introduction of early and late rail services between London Liverpool Street and Southend Airport.

From October 2019, WizzAir will start flying from London Southend Airport, to three new destinations.

These new routes will help support the continued growth in passenger numbers at London Southend Airport in line with the Group’s target of reaching five million passengers per annum by February 2023.

Given the ongoing uncertainty in the sector, in part caused by Brexit, the group is taking a cautious approach to passenger forecasts in the short term, with the board working on the basis of circa 2.3 million passengers for the year ending 29 February 2020.

This would represent an increase of 53% versus the previous year.

During the period, the volume of waste managed, which is predominantly processed into waste wood fuel, increased by 148k tonnes to 806k tonnes.

The continued improvement in performance is a result of all the energy recovery plants (except one) that Stobart Energy supplies under long term contracts.

In July 2019, Connect Airways – in which Stobart Group holds a 30% interest – received merger control clearance from the European Commission for its acquisition of Flybe.

Along with the industry as a whole, Stobart Rail & Civils has been affected by delays to tendering for and the ongoing reorganisation at Network Rail has further impacted the pace of new contract awards.

Chief executive Warwick Brady said: “Stobart Group has made considerable progress in the period, particularly in terms of the number of passengers that we have welcomed at London Southend Airport and the volume of waste fuel that we have been in a position to supply under contract.

“I am particularly encouraged by the quality of airline partners that we are now working with and the opportunity that brings to deliver future sustainable operating profits.”

The Group’s interim results for the six months to 31 August 2019 are due to be released on 14 November.