Slovenia postal company posts record profit in 2005

Posta Slovenija, the Slovenian postal company, made a net profit of SIT 3.6bn (EUR 15m) in 2005, which is its best result ever, the general manager of the company said at Thursday’s press conference.

According to Ales Hauc, the company saw its sales revenues rise 10% to SIT 49.9bn (EUR 208m) in 2005, beating forecasts by 5%.

Meanwhile, operating costs rose less than 1% to SIT 45.1bn (EUR 188.2m) in the year, allowing the company to report a record-breaking profit, Hauc said.

He added that the strong performance is a result of an increase in the volume of mail carried and improved productivity, as well as higher prices.

He said the company forecasts a 5% rise in revenues this year, while costs are to rise by 10%. Consequently the net profit is to be somewhat lower than last year.

Hauc reiterated that the one of the priorities for this year was the selection of a strategic partner and improved cooperation with postal companies in nearby markets.

Posta Slovenija is in talks with the Austrian, German and French postal companies and some other postal institutions, he explained, adding that a decision on the strategic partner should be known in the autumn.

However, the management believes that Posta Slovenija should remain Slovenian hands. He also said that the company was looking to make a bigger stand on the logistics market.

The company is to spend SIT 8.6bn on investment this year, with most of it going for post offices, IT and vehicles.

Hauc stressed that there was one post office for every 36 sq. kilometres of territory and 3,586 people in Slovenia, which is better than the EU average, where a post office covers 58.3 sq. kilometres of territory and 4,509 people.