Empresas y finanzas

SES Reports Strong Performance in First Quarter



    SES, the pre-eminent satellite operator worldwide
    (Paris:SESG)(LuxX:SESG), reports strong results for the first quarter
    of 2007. The results for the period include the contribution until 30
    March 2007 of the assets transferred to GE as part of the split-off
    transaction announced on 14 February 2007.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    -- Revenue rose 21% to EUR 399.5m (Q1 2006: EUR 329.3m)

    -- Recurring revenue(1) up 6.2% on prior year period

    -- EBITDA increased by 21% to EUR 275.2m (Q1 2006: EUR 227.2m)

    -- Operating profit grew 9% to EUR 137.9m (Q1 2006: EUR 126.4m)

    -- 22% higher excluding non-recurring NSS-8 charge of EUR
    15.9m

    -- Net profit was EUR 97.7m (Q1 2006: EUR 118.3m)

    -- Reflecting one-off gain on sale of subsidiary in 2006

    -- Major new contract for French market development signed with
    CANAL+

    -- EUR 1.2 billion split-off transaction concluded with GE,
    exchanging their shareholding in SES for a company holding
    assets and cash

    -- Group utilisation rate at 31 March was 74% (761 of 1,028
    commercially available transponders)

    Romain Bausch, President and CEO of SES, commented:

    "The year has begun extremely well, with the conclusion of a
    significant agreement with Canal+ for the transmission of its French
    pay-TV offer on ASTRA and the completion of the transaction with GE.
    These two events deliver a combination of guaranteed growth in Europe
    and improved development potential for our assets worldwide. In
    particular, the GE transaction has now removed the share overhang
    associated with their shareholding and has facilitated the
    optimisation of the SES fleet. The subsequent cancellation of the GE
    shares delivers additional value per share to SES shareholders. We
    continue to focus on efforts to enhance shareholder value."

    (1) "Recurring revenue" is a measure designed to represent
    underlying revenue performance by removing currency exchange
    effects, eliminating one-time items and disregarding any
    changes in consolidation scope.

    BUSINESS REVIEW

    The year has begun well with good operational performance
    complemented by the conclusion of the new long-term agreement with
    Canal+ for the transmission of its full pay-TV offer for the French
    market on the ASTRA satellite platform, and the announcement and
    completion of the EUR 1.2 billion transaction with major shareholder
    GE. The transaction with GE exchanged certain assets and cash for the
    remaining GE shareholding of 103 million shares in SES, which were
    subsequently cancelled. Following the conclusion of the transaction,
    the SES group net debt at 31 March was EUR 3,332 million, representing
    a reported net debt/EBITDA multiple of 2.95.

    Revenue in the period grew 21% to EUR 399.5 million, with a solid
    same scope underlying growth of 6.2%, complemented by the contribution
    from the acquired businesses SES NEW SKIES and ND SatCom.

    EBITDA grew by 21% to EUR 275.2m, representing a margin of 68.9%.
    The infrastructure margin rose to 80.5%, while services activities
    returned a margin of 11.2%, excluding start-up costs and non-recurring
    items.

    Excluding the non-recurring EUR 15.9 million charge taken in
    connection with the NSS-8 launch failure, the operating profit also
    rose strongly by 22% mirroring the top line growth.

    Profit of the group declined from EUR 118.3 m to EUR 97.7m,
    principally reflecting a one-off gain of EUR 15.0 million recorded in
    February 2006 on the sale of SES Re S.A., and the non-recurring NSS-8
    charge in Q1 2007. The GE transaction concluded just before the
    quarter end will have a significantly favourable impact on earnings
    per share beginning in the second quarter.

    As of 1 January 2007, assets were reorganised under the operating
    companies of the SES group, to reflect their geographical focus. The
    principal change effected was the transfer of certain satellite assets
    to SES NEW SKIES. The AAP-1 satellite (28 transponders) was renamed
    NSS-11. The AMC-12/ASTRA 4A capacity (72 transponders) was transferred
    from SES AMERICOM and SES ASTRA respectively, and renamed NSS-10. SES
    NEW SKIES also assumed responsibility for the commercialisation of the
    ASTRA 2B steerable beam from SES ASTRA, currently comprising eight
    transponders.

    SES ASTRA

    The major development in the period was the agreement with Canal+
    to transmit its full pay-TV programming offer for the French market
    from a single orbital position on the ASTRA satellite platform at 19.2
    degrees East. The agreement provides that Canal+ will take several
    ASTRA transponders in addition to those currently contracted and also
    foresees a framework for the long term growth requirements of Canal+
    Group. This agreement consolidates and secures ASTRA's position in the
    French market.

    TV and radio channels carried on the ASTRA and SIRIUS satellite
    systems continued to grow, with over 2,000 channels now being
    delivered via these systems.

    The reach of the ASTRA satellite system grew to over 109 million
    TV households in the 35 countries surveyed in Europe and North Africa,
    confirming the pre-eminent position of the ASTRA system in the region.

    ASTRA2Connect, a service offering high-speed internet connectivity
    via satellite, commenced service from the 23.5 degrees East orbital
    position, delivering broadband services via satellite to consumers not
    served by terrestrial means.

    SES ASTRA's utilisation rate at the period end was 88%, or 232 of
    263 commercially available transponders (As reported at 31 December
    2006: 84%, or 251 of 305 commercially available transponders).

    Pre-commercial development of the entavio platform and its
    associated services continued during the period. On 19 April, SES
    ASTRA announced the successful conclusion of an agreement with German
    Pay-TV operator Premiere, which becomes the first major pay-TV
    customer of the entavio platform and provides critical mass for the
    development of its digital services in the German market. Negotiations
    are underway with other potential broadcasting customers of the
    platform.

    SES ASTRA's services activities continued to perform well. ASTRA
    Platform Services renewed and extended existing contracts, continued
    to diversify its product offering and grew its broadcaster customer
    base. ND Satcom, a full member of the group since June 2006, continued
    to grow its strong government business and develop the large framework
    agreement with German Bundeswehr (BW2 contract). Revenue from this
    unit reflects these developments. The SES ASTRA services activities
    also included revenue from Q1 for SATLYNX, which has left the group
    from end of March following the completion of the split-off
    transaction with GE.

    SES AMERICOM

    The successful launch of AMC-18 in December 2006 was soon followed
    by its entry into commercial service in February 2007 after extensive
    in-orbit testing. AMC-18 was initially built as the ground spare for
    the successful AMC-10 and AMC-11 satellite programmes, and represented
    a very low cost opportunity to deliver additional capacity in orbit.
    This satellite, augmenting the HD-PRIME cable neighbourhood in the
    U.S., has a 15-year design life, and will provide additional capacity
    to feed the demand for HDTV into cable systems across the U.S.

    AMERICOM Government Services extended its contract with NASA for a
    multi-year period to provide capacity for television feeds and
    broadcasting activities. The capacity will be used for carrying Space
    Shuttle mission broadcasts and for NASA TV channels.

    NewCom International, a teleport operator and global
    communications provider, signed an agreement with SES AMERICOM to add
    REDiSat to its Emergency Communications Portfolio.

    SES AMERICOM's utilisation rate at the period end was 73%, or 327
    of 447 commercially available transponders (As reported at 31 December
    2006: 71%, or 357 of 499 commercially available transponders).

    Additional development of the IP-PRIME offering also featured
    during the period. As well as numerous technical enhancements, Cisco
    joined with SES AMERICOM to support the launch of a complete IPTV
    offering to U.S. Regional LECs. IP-PRIME now offers over 350 TV and
    audio channels for IPTV offerings by telephone and cable companies.
    Commercial activities are expected to begin in the second quarter
    2007.

    SES NEW SKIES

    On January 30 the NSS-8 satellite launch resulted in failure when
    the rocket exploded on the launch platform. The procurement process
    has begun for a replacement satellite and an announcement will be made
    in due course. The impact of the failure is that there will be a
    slowing of the growth profile expected in the coming months, however
    this represents a delay rather than a disappearance of the revenue
    foreseen to be associated with the satellite. SES NEW SKIES continues
    to market available capacity in the region.

    New contracts in the period included a two-transponder, multi-year
    contract to provide internet trunking to French Polynesia, and a
    contract to broadcast two new free-to-air DTH channels with STV of
    Cameroon in West Africa.

    Finally, as part of the group's fleet reorganisation, the AMC-12
    and AAP-1 satellites were transferred into the SES NEW SKIES fleet,
    and are now designated NSS-10 and NSS-11.

    SES NEW SKIES' utilisation rate at the period end was 63.5%, or
    202 of 318 commercially available transponders (As reported at 31
    December 2006: 71%, or 152 of 215 commercially available
    transponders).

    Outlook

    The excellent start to the year provides additional opportunities,
    especially now that SES is the majority owner of its entire fleet.
    This gives greater control over the commercialisation of its capacity.
    Organic growth continues in SES's core markets, driven by ongoing
    channel growth as well as the development of High Definition
    Television. SES remains on track to follow its continuous growth path
    as additional new transponder capacity is launched into orbit.

    The ASTRA 1L satellite is due for launch from the European Space
    Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, on 3 May 2007. Other launches
    scheduled for this year include SIRIUS-4 in Q3 and AMC-14 in Q4.

    The 2007 revenue and EBITDA guidance published on 19 February 2007
    remains unchanged and is attached as an Appendix to this document. We
    have also published today (Appendix) updated capital expenditure
    projections.

    SUMMARY FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (in EUR millions)

    1. CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT

    -0-
    *T
    Q1, 2007 Q1, 2006 %

    Revenue 399.5 329.3 +21.3%
    Operating expenses (124.3) (102.1) +21.7%
    ----------------------------------
    EBITDA 275.2 227.2 +21.1%

    Depreciation (127.5) (92.9) +37.2%
    Amortisation (9.8) (7.9) +24.1%
    ----------------------------------
    Operating profit 137.9 126.4 +9.0%

    Net financing charges (18.4) 18.8 --
    ----------------------------------
    Profit for the period before tax 119.5 145.2 -17.7%

    Income tax expense (24.6) (26.3) -6.5%
    ----------------------------------
    Profit for the period after tax 94.9 118.9 -20.2%

    Share of associates' result 2.6 (0.7) --
    Minority interests 0.2 0.1 --
    ----------------------------------
    Net profit of the Group 97.7 118.3 -17.4%
    ----------------------------------
    *T

    2. QUARTERLY DEVELOPMENT (and percentage change to previous
    quarter)

    -0-
    *T
    Year-to-date, Q1 2007 Q1 % Q2 % Q3 % Q4 %

    Revenue 399.5 - 5.6% -- -- -- -- -- --
    Operating expenses (124.3) - 25.1% -- -- -- -- -- --
    -----------------------------------------------
    EBITDA 275.2 + 7.0 % -- -- -- -- -- --
    Depreciation (127.5) + 6.3% -- -- -- -- -- --
    Amortisation (9.8) -- -- -- -- -- -- --
    -----------------------------------------------
    Operating profit 137.9 + 8.4% -- -- -- -- -- --
    -----------------------------------------------
    *T

    3. ANALYSIS BY PRIMARY GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENT

    -0-
    *T
    Other
    Year-to-date, Q1 SES SES SES operations/
    2007 ASTRA AMERICOM NEW SKIES Elimination Total

    Revenue 233.8 106.4 66.5 (7.2) 399.5
    Operating expenses (69.9) (37.6) (18.4) 1.6 (124.3)
    --------------------------------------------------
    EBITDA 163.9 68.8 48.1 (5.6) 275.2
    Depreciation (47.2) (38.4) (41.9) -- (127.5)
    Amortisation (9.1) (0.7) -- -- (9.8)
    --------------------------------------------------
    Operating profit 107.6 29.7 6.2 (5.6) 137.9
    --------------------------------------------------
    *T

    4. ANALYSIS BY SECONDARY BUSINESS SEGMENT

    -0-
    *T
    Other
    Year-to-date, Q1 Infra- One-off operations/
    2007 structure Services items(2) Elimination Total

    Revenue 344.5 75.0 -- (20.0) 399.5
    EBITDA 277.3 8.4 (4.9) (5.6) 275.2
    ----------------------------------------------------
    EBITDA margin 80.5% 11.2% -- -- 68.9%
    ----------------------------------------------------
    *T

    (2) Start-up costs and non-recurring items

    Appendix

    Revenue and EBITDA ranges - 2007 (Unchanged!(3))

    -0-
    *T
    2007 Analyst guidance
    -------------- -------------------------------------------------------
    EUR million 6 November 2006 14 February 2007
    -------------- -------------------------------------------------------
    Update for
    1 EUR = 1.27 1 EUR = 1.30 recent
    USD USD events(1) 2007
    -------------------------------------------------------
    Total
    -- Revenues 1660 - 1700 1644 - 1684 (76) 1568 - 1608
    -- EBITDA 1100 - 1140 1089 - 1129 (48) 1041 - 1081
    Infrastructure
    -- Revenues 1384 - 1421 1371 - 1408 (39) 1332 - 1369
    -- EBITDA 1098 - 1129 1088 - 1119 (30) 1058 - 1089
    Services
    -- Revenues 349 - 374 346 - 371 (37) 309 - 334
    -- EBITDA(2) 34 - 36 33 - 45 (6) 27 - 39
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------
    *T

    (1) Includes: GE transaction (assumes effective date, 1 April),
    entavio pre-commercial costs, NSS-8 failure impact and Canal+
    new contract

    (2) Services EBITDA normalised for entavio and other
    pre-commercial costs

    (3) The guidance on SES key financials as published on 14 and 19
    Feb 2007 remains unchanged. The entavio investor update
    published on 19 April 2007 already clarified that the
    anticipated additional 2007 EBITDA dilution above the 12 MEUR
    amount as included in this table is expected to be offset by
    other specific cost elements within the Group, both of a
    recurring and non-recurring nature, and therefore existing
    Group EBITDA guidance is not impacted by this transaction.

    Capital Expenditure schedule
    http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5390013

    Additional information is available on our website www.ses.com

    PRESS / ANALYST TELECONFERENCES

    A press call will be hosted at 11.00 CET today, 2 May 2007.
    Journalists are requested to call one of the following numbers five
    minutes prior to this time:

    -0-
    *T
    +49 (0)69 9897 2623 Germany
    +32 (0)2 400 6875 Belgium
    +33 (0)1 70 99 42 67 France
    +352 342 080 8191 Luxembourg
    +44 (0)20 7138 0845 UK
    *T

    A call for investors and analysts will be hosted at 14.00 CET
    today, 2 May 2007. Participants are requested to call one of the
    following numbers five minutes prior to this time:

    -0-
    *T
    +49 (0)30 9919 4895 Germany
    +32 (0)2 789 8726 Belgium
    +33 (0)1 70 99 42 95 France
    +352 342 080 8584 Luxembourg
    +44 (0)20 7806 1966 UK
    +1 718 354 1388 USA
    *T

    A presentation, which will be referred to in each call, will be
    available for download from the Investor Relations section of our
    website www.ses.com

    This announcement does not constitute or form part of, and should
    not be construed as, any offer for sale of, or solicitation of any
    offer to buy, any securities of SES S.A. ("SES") nor should it or any
    part of it form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any
    contract or commitment whatsoever.

    No representation or warranty, express or implied, is or will be
    made by SES, its advisors or any other person as to the accuracy,
    completeness or fairness of the information or opinions contained in
    this announcement, and any reliance you place on them will be at your
    sole risk. Without prejudice to the foregoing, none of SES or its
    advisors accepts any liability whatsoever for any loss howsoever
    arising, directly or indirectly, from use of this announcement or its
    contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith.

    This announcement includes "forward-looking statements". All
    statements other than statements of historical fact included in this
    announcement, including, without limitation, those regarding SES's
    financial position, business strategy, plans and objectives of
    management for future operations (including development plans and
    objectives relating to SES's products and services) are
    forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements involve
    known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors
    that could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of
    SES to be materially different from future results, performance or
    achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
    Such forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions
    regarding SES's present and future business strategies and the
    environment in which SES will operate in the future and such
    assumptions may or may not prove to be correct. These forward-looking
    statements speak only as at the date of this announcement.
    Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement regarding
    past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that
    such trends or activities will continue in the future. SES does not
    undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
    statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or
    otherwise.