Qatar Navigation (Milaha) Q.S.C. today announced its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2013.

Summary financial results are as follows:

• Operating revenues of QR 691.6 million vs. QR 631.6 million for the same period in 2012, an increase of 9% year over year.
• Operating Profit of QR 282.8 million vs. QR 232.4 million for the same period in 2012, an increase of 22% year over year.
• Net Profit of QR 344.6 million vs. QR 283.7 million for the same period in 2012, an increase of 21% year over year.
• Earnings per share of QR 3.01 vs. QR 2.47 for the same period in 2012.

Milaha’s ongoing internal transformation initiatives along with improved market conditions drove strong performance.

Volume growth combined with increased efficiency resulted in a continued upward trend for Milaha’s port services unit. Container shipping, logistics and bulk shipping results also improved significantly over Q1 2012.

Deployment of one new vessel combined with higher utilization of the fleet led to a strong improvement in Halul Offshore’s results relative to Q1 2012.

Milaha’s LNG vessel joint ventures and operating partnerships improved profitability, while lower charter rates led to a modest decline, relative to Q1 2012, for Milaha’s fully owned tankers and gas carriers.

Milaha’s investment portfolio posted strong results, mainly driven by dividend growth, revaluations and market trading activities.

“We are very pleased with the group’s performance as a whole. Coming on the back of a strong 2012, we have continued our positive trajectory,” said Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairman and Managing Director of Milaha. “The most encouraging aspect is that our core businesses in maritime transport and services have started the year well.”

“The strategic and transformative journey that we began two years ago has started to reflect in the financial performance of the group,” said Khalifa Ali Al-Hetmi, President and Chief Executive Officer of Milaha. “We intend to continue on this journey to build a stronger, more sustainable Milaha for our shareholders.”

Milaha’s Board of Directors has also approved a share re-purchase program of up to 5% of the outstanding shares of the company. This program will be implemented once the company has obtained all approvals and completed the necessary steps. The company plans to fund this re-purchase by using its significant investment portfolio.

The company will conduct an investor conference call on Thursday, May 2nd, 2013 at 3 pm Doha time, to further discuss its results. The conference call, organized by QNB Financial Services, may be accessed by telephone by dialing 0808 238 0673 (UK Free Call) and +44 (0) 1452 569 335 (UK and International) and entering the Conference ID: 62611285.