SAAM Closes 2023 with Historic Earnings
SAAM reported net income of US$501 million in 2023, representing its best-ever results thanks to the sale of its port and logistics assets to Hapag-Lloyd, which generated a net gain of US$422 million.
Sales for the year totaled US$540 million and EBITDA was US$160 million, surpassing the prior year by 17% and 9%, respectively.
"The sale of our port terminal and inland logistics operations leaves us in a solid position to move forward on the path we have set for ourselves: to lead the consolidation process in the towage industry and grow in air cargo logistics services. Likewise, throughout 2023 our continuing operations posted solid results and we were able to continue our path of growth," said SAAM's CEO, Macario Valdés.
SAAM Towage operates in 13 countries and almost 100 ports in the Americas, making it the industry's leading operator in the region, and Aerosan operates at eight airports in Chile, Colombia and Ecuador.
The company also reported that the Board of Directors agreed to propose to shareholders at the annual general meeting a dividend of US$125 million, in addition to the interim dividend distributed in January 2024. In total, the two dividends are equivalent to 50% of net income for the period and, if approved, will be the largest dividend distributed in the company's history.
At SAAM Towage, maneuvers were up 12% with respect to 2022, mainly due to increased activity in almost all markets, the reactivation of the cruise market, new service agreements and growing operations in Brazil and Peru.
Time charter days, associated with dedicated towage services at oil, gas and mining terminals, grew by 8%, mostly because of increased activity in Brazil.
At Aerosan, tons handled increased 5% due to higher export volumes from new operations in Ecuador and increased activity in Chile and Colombia.
Milestones for 2023 include purchasing 21 tugs to provide services in Brazil; incorporating into SAAM Towage’s fleet its first electric tugs which are already in Canada; acquiring Pertraly, an airport cargo management company in Ecuador; renewing the concession to operate in the Santiago (Chile) export terminal for five more years; and expanding the cargo capacity of Aerosan's warehouses in Bogota.
In addition, SAAM was selected for the Dow Jones Sustainability Index Chile for the eighth consecutive year and the MILA Pacific Alliance Select for the sixth straight year.
Other recent developments include the confirmation by Humphreys and Feller Rate of the company’s "Category AA" rating with a "Stable" outlook, a strategic alliance signed with Avianca Cargo to handle its export and import cargo at the Santiago airport, and an alliance with ENAP to operate the first electric tug in Chile.
