Sif adjusted earnings fell to €13m in the first nine months of the year, from almost €45m in the same period last year, due to a later than planned start on the Borssele 3&4 contract because of delays in steel deliveries.
The company also blamed a relatively high absence rate due to illness resulting in higher than expected labour costs.
Contribution – revenue minus costs of raw material, subcontracts and logistics – was also down to €57m by the end of September from close to €105m in 2017. This was mainly down to the under utilisation of production facilities in the second and third quarters, it said.
Only 10% of the production of Borssele 3&4 was realised in the first three quarters of the year, with the delay in steel delivery putting back production by about seven weeks.
Sif added that this will also impact expected margin and production flow in the rest of the year and in 2019.
Production in the latest period stood at 100 kilo tonnes compared with 167kt in 2017. The company expects overall production for this year to be about 145kt. A total of 200kt has been booked for next year.