R-R orders continue to roll in

At the company’s annual meeting yesterday (30 April), chief executive Sir John Rose (pictured) said the group was well placed to manage current challenges and emerge stronger and better positioned. He went on: "The application of a consistent strategy has resulted in a broad and well balanced portfolio in terms of geographical spread, the balance between our businesses and the proportion of revenue generated by services. The combination of the high technological content of our products and services, our ability to integrate technologies into complex power systems and our understanding of our customers' requirements have created significant barriers to entry and new opportunities for long-term growth.” He believed that a focus on operational efficiency and cost reduction had helped to maintain competitiveness and deliver a strong financial performance. The company had recently spread the group’s debt repayment profile by raising £500 million repayable in 2019. Rolls-Royce intended to continue investing in its existing businesses and in areas such as nuclear power through the downturn. Turning to trading performance in 2009, Sir John said it was clear that Rolls’ customers and suppliers were affected by the recession, reduced demand and the financing constraints. However, he remained optimistic with Rolls-Royce’s “substantial order book” continuing to grow in the first quarter. "Our defence, marine and energy businesses are expected to deliver good profit growth this year,” he went on. “As anticipated in February 2009, we expect our civil aerospace business' underlying profits in 2009 to be lower than in 2008 as a result of a slowdown in activity on some original equipment programmes and lower growth in aftermarket revenues.”