SEPI Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales

• The investments of Grupo SEPI will grow 55%, reaching 242 M€
• CORREOS, NAVANTIA and TRAGSA will represent 83% of the turnover of the Group’s companies
• Dialogue will become one of SEPI’s identifying marks, and in this line will be tackled the negotiation of NAVANTIA’s Strategic Plan

The state-owned industrial holding company Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales (SEPI) envisages reaching this financial year a turnover of around 4,500 M€, which will come mostly from the sales made by its companies. The announcement was made this Thursday by its Chairwoman, Ms. Pilar Platero, during the submission of the budget of Grupo SEPI for the financial year 2017 in the Lower Chamber of Parliament.

During her intervention, Ms. Platero offered a breakdown of the turnover envisaged for SEPI’s main companies. Thus, CORREOS’ turnover will reach 1,769 M€, that of NAVANTIA 1,207 M€, while that for , TRAGSA 750 M€. These three companies will amount to 83% of the Group’s turnover for this year.

In the case of the state-owned postal company CORREOS, a number of income diversification policies are being implemented with the aim of offsetting the fall of the postal activity. Thanks to this, last year the company managed to increase its turnover after several years during which it decreased. SEPI’s Chairwoman stated that the most immediate goal is achieving that the Universal Postal Service which the company provides be regarded as a General Economic Interest Service, thus making possible to determine its net cost. These diversification policies have been included into the Strategic Plan 2017-2021, which will allow to CORREOS progress – with SEPI’s support – on this path towards the return to profits and growth in the medium-and-long term.

Regarding the shipbuilding company NAVANTIA, Ms. Platero declared that the Strategic Plan envisaged for the company seeks to reinforce its efficiency and sustainability, promoting the impact on those economic areas on which its shipyards are located. This Plan, pointed out SEPI’s Chairwoman, will also have as its goal the preservation of the production facilities, the generation of jobs which meet the demands set by the new technologies and winning new orders aimed at reinforcing the current workload. The company will also have in place a training plan with the goal of reinforcing its strategic capabilities.

Most of NAVANTIA’s turnover will come from the development of the shipbuilding military programs for the Spanish Ministry of Defense and for the export market, from civil shipbuilding, from ship repairs and from the diversification into the wind power industry. It is envisaged that all the Company’s facilities will have enough workload for reaching an activity rate of 82%, thus exceeding in five percentage points that reached in the last financial year.

Ms. Platero stated that dialogue will become one of SEPI’s identification marks. In this sense, she stressed that she aims to tackle NAVANTIA’s Strategic Plan through a smooth dialogue with the workers’ representatives, with the goal of reaching agreements which reinforce the company’s competitiveness.

SEPI’s Chairwoman also highlighted that, notwithstanding the austerity policies in expenditure, last year it was possible to preserve the size of the companies’ workforces, which currently amount to 72,854 employees, against 72,433 in 2016. CORREOS, with 57,000 employees, is the company with the largest workforce. The economic impact which Grupo SEPI has might be assessed on the induced employment of approximately 245,000 persons.

Ms. Platero also informed that the financial balance amounting to 181 M€ and the participation in profits of the companies as a result of the application of the equity method for the amount of 280 M€, will ameliorate the forecasted losses, which amount to 161 M€.

Altogether, Grupo SEPI will make investments this year in all the Spanish regions amounting to 242 M€, which will amount to a 55% increase in comparison with those made in 2016 (155 M€).

Economic and social profitability

In her speech, the Chairwoman also made a comprehensive description of Grupo SEPI and of its current reason of being. In this sense, she pointed out that along its history, SEPI has proved its usefulness as a professional manager, both in the wide process of divestment of its portfolio and in the addition of companies from other state-owned groups in order to being managed under corporate criteria.

The Group presents a high level of heterogeneity, both in regard to the size of its companies and as for their activities, added Ms. Platero, who also highlighted its significant territorial presence, since it is present in all the Spanish regions and in practically all the provinces.

Finally, SEPI’s Chairwoman stressed that among the Group’s objectives are applying the Government’s guidelines with regard to its affiliated and subsidiary companies, and achieving the profitability of its portfolio. But she also said that the criteria for managing the companies must also be set in accordance with the public interest. That is to say, SEPI seeks a financial profitability, but also a social profitability.