SBB expects similar profit to previous year
Published: Saturday, Nov 23rd 2024, 02:30
Updated At: Saturday, Nov 23rd 2024, 01:50
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SBB has expressed its satisfaction with the expected profit for the current financial year. In an interview with CH Media, SBB President Monika Ribar said that the expected result should be in the region of the previous year's profit.
Thanks to high passenger numbers, SBB generated a profit of CHF 267 million in 2023. "It currently looks like we will achieve roughly the same result as last year," said Monika Ribar, Chair of the SBB Board of Directors, in an interview with "Schweiz am Wochenende" on Saturday.
According to Ribar, the strong demand in passenger transportation - especially in the second half of the year - should lead to a result that exceeds the railroad company's expectations.
Aftermath of the corona pandemic
In the long term, the profit would not be enough. Ribar said that SBB needed an annual profit of around 500 million francs in order to finance investments and bring its debt in line with its earning power. The three billion franc increase in debt that occurred during the coronavirus pandemic "is unfortunately not something we can simply get rid of", she said.
Net debt amounted to CHF 11.6 billion in the first half of the current year. SBB therefore continued to exceed the debt coverage ratio set by the federal government for 2030. In the first half of 2024, SBB made a profit of CHF 50.8 million, only half as much as in the previous year.
In 2023, SBB made a profit for the first time in three years, i.e. since before the coronavirus pandemic. "Our financial situation is tense," said Ribar in the latest interview. The railroad company is glad to have the support of the federal government to reduce its debt. It also has to make a large contribution of its own. SBB's goal is to return to higher profits.
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