transurban

Transurban-Fluor's rebuild of 14 of the busiest miles of the Washington DC Capital Beltway must be one of the most difficult construction management jobs currently under way in the country. The joint venture toll concessionaire is rebuilding a 2x4 lane expressway into 2x 6 lanes, the extra two lanes each direction to be High Occupancy/or Toll (HOT) lanes with the traffic managed for free flow with dynamic pricing.

The busiest segment of the Washington metro area's Capital Beltway is one huge distracting construction zone at present. Toll concession partners Transurban and Fluor are widening the mainline of the Beltway from eight lanes to twelve and rebuilding or adding to interchanges - in order to get 2x2 toll express lanes in the center while maintaining 2x4 free lanes on the outside.

Strong economic growth in its Australian homeland saw Transurban increase profits by 98% in the year ended June 30 2011. Toll revenue rose 10% to $1,153m and costs went up by less than 1%. EBITDA (earnings before interest taxes depreciation, amortization) were A$719m, up 13%.

Transurban Group report toll revenues of $696m (A$774m @$A=90c), for their FY2010 (year to June 30) an increase of 6.8% on FY2009 after allowing for the end of their M4 concession in Sydney. The group reports EBITDA of $567m (A$630m) up 13% and cash flow of $312m (A$347m) up 32%. Profit declared was $54m (A$60m) v a small loss in FY2009.

Transurban has been systematically overstating its financial strength, hiding debt, paying dividends out of borrowing, making bad investments, and generally defrauding lenders and investors. And the big Melbourne Australia-based toiler, making heavy investments in toll lanes here in the Washington DC metro rate, is headed inexorably for bankruptcy, according to John Louis Goldberg, a retired government scientist/mathematician in Sydney, Australia.

Reports are that Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) fund is selling its 12% of Transurban stock after an unsuccessful takeover move by it and another Canadian pension fund. This seems to mark the end of a six month series of maneuvers by OTPP and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), another big institutional shareholder in Transurban to buy up all the publicly traded stock and take the Australian-based toiler private.

Transurban the Melbourne Australia-based toller reports 2009 second half (H2) toll revenue of A$416m, a 6% increase on 2008H2. Based on A$=90cUS that's $840m/yr. Operating costs were reduced 3.9% to an annual $183m. Underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation & amortization (EBITDA) grew 12.4% to an annual rate of $601m.

Australia's leading toll concessionaire Transurban reports toll revenues up a solid 7.6% to A$779m in the financial year ended 30 June, and a stronger increase of 17.8% to A$480m in net earnings before interest taxes depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). Adjusting for one-off items EBITDA of A$583m was an 11.5% increase on the previous financial year. Cost reductions of A$27m were reported achieved.

Australian/North American toller Transurban reported strong toll revenues and earnings in the second half of 2008 (2008H2) despite the economic slowdown. Toll revenues increased nearly ten percent from 2007H2 to US$524m/yr (A$416m for the six months with A$=63c, most subsequent numbers are A$). EBITDA was A$297m up 11.6% on the prior corresponding period (pcp) and cash flow rose 33% to A$138m, it  reported to the Australian Stock Exchange.

Leading Australian toll operator and developer of the toll express lanes on the Capital Beltway and I-95/395 in Virginia reported mixed financial results for the past financial year. Toll revenues were up 34% to $667m. Operating profits or earnings before interest taxes depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $434m were up 19%. (All $ numbers are US$ based on our conversion at A$=87cUS)