San Possidonio, 11 June 2022 – The CPL CONCORDIA Shareholders' Meeting met yesterday in person with 350 members to approve the results as at 31 December 2021.
The data of the reclassified financial statements show a value of production of 290 million Euros - up 4% compared to 2020 - and shareholders' equity increased to 132 million. Although the effects of the pandemic and the increase in the cost of raw materials have had an impact on volumes and margins, CPL's commitment has made it possible to close the 2021 financial year with significant results both from an economic-financial and employment point of view. EBITDA amounted to €20.7 million, representing 7.1% of the Value of Production. The ratio of Financial Debt to Ebitda is 1.42x. Profit for the year amounted to €1.2 million.
Investments of €15 million mainly concerned Heat Management, public lighting, and the purchase of software and devices to support digital transformation.
"In the four-year period, CPL has had a strong recovery in terms of volumes and margins," comments Chairman Paolo Barbieri. "Now we want to continue to grow in a sustainable way, also taking advantage of the great opportunities and consequent boost that could also derive from the PNRR, proposing ourselves as a qualified partner of public and private entities at the service of the energy and digital transition. We are attentive to the developments of hydrogen and biomethane as plant designers and builders."
"In the last four years, CPL has gone from 220 million euros in production value developed during 2017 to 290 million in 2021, despite the effect of Covid and the increase in raw materials and energy," echoes General Manager Pierluigi Capelli.
In the same period, EBITDA remained at around 7%, while NFP improved sharply and significantly, from €139 million in 2017 to €29.4 million in 2021.
"Today we believe that our company has all the fundamentals in place to be able to grow and develop further volumes of turnover with adequate margins – continues Capelli -. The financial funding for new investments has already been obtained, given that in January 2021 CPL obtained a loan of 43 million euros from some major national credit institutions, backed by the guarantee of SACE."
Even in a difficult year like 2021, employment was protected, and recorded substantial resilience with 1500 units. Skills development and organisation policies include the investment of €1.7 million in staff training plans, corresponding to 50,000 hours, almost doubled compared to 2020. The most important projects concerned managerial training on soft skills, while the corporate welfare plans adopted allowed the distribution of €0.7 million to shareholders and employees.
In 2021, the cooperative recorded the economic parameters that allow the payment of a rebate to members and arranged for the allocation of a sum of 600 thousand euros in the budget.
In the multi-year works portfolio, worth over 1 billion euros, among the most significant acquisitions in the first months of 2022 are: the 6-year Framework Agreement, for the assignment of Integrated maintenance and management services for buildings and plants in use by the Region of Tuscany; The 11-year Global Service for the Galliera Hospital in Genoa; the 9-year contract with the Baggiovara Hospital in Modena, for construction and the management of the of a trigeneration plant; the three-year Framework Agreement with a national player for the supply, installation and maintenance of Equipment for the remote control of digital methane final reduction units.
Guest speeches
Stefano Bonaccini, Emilia Romagna Regional President:
"Despite the drama of the pandemic and the difficulties of recent months due to the high cost of energy and raw materials, Emilia-Romagna is confirmed as a very vital land, as shown by the latest economic data, among the best compared to other Italian regions.
This is thanks to a serious and competent entrepreneurial fabric, of which The cooperative world is a founding and characterizing trait in particular in these territories. This is also confirmed by the balance sheet numbers of a company like CPL CONCORDIA, which has meritoriously maintained its inclusive vocation and its attention to members and employees. We are facing difficult times and complicated challenges, but continuing to work together as we have done in recent months, I am very confident and optimistic. For our part, the Region will continue to support policies devoted to digitalization and innovation, fundamental elements to continue to compete on national and international markets by focusing on quality and excellence."
Mauro Lusetti, national president of Legacoop:
"Given that 30% of you have been a member for less than 2 years, I invite everyone to regain possession of your 123-year history, to understand that the cooperators before you passed the baton to you and now the responsibility is yours. Cooperatives were not created to conform to the market but to diversify, thanks to cooperative principles that influence the way we approach the market and become distinctive elements. In the long term, the issue of sustainability will be central, an industrial transformation that Europe has already defined: with the taxonomy, what it means to be sustainable and thus be able to receive credit from the system will be concretely defined".
Learn more about the data in the FY2021 Financial Statement..
