26th Oct 2006 14:04
Go-Ahead Group PLC26 October 2006 For release on 26 October 2006 The Go-Ahead Group plc ("Go-Ahead" or the "Group") AGM statement At the Annual General Meeting to be held later today, Sir Patrick Brown,Chairman of Go-Ahead, will make the following statement: "The Group's overall trading for the first quarter has been in line withmanagement's expectations. Trading in the bus division has been strong, with the combination of thecontinued delivery of a high quality operating performance and tight control oflabour costs producing a very good result in the London bus business. Volumegrowth and lower fuel and other costs have had a positive impact across thederegulated bus businesses, offsetting the impact of continued high engineeringcosts in the recently acquired Birmingham business. The Group has now hedgedsome 85 per cent. of its fuel consumption through to the end of the financialyear at an effective average cap and collar of 32 pence and 27 pence per litrerespectively. In addition, the Group has acquired Docklands Minibus andMarchwood Buses which will strengthen the Group's existing operations in Londonand Southampton respectively. Within the rail division, both franchises - Southern and Southeastern - haveperformed strongly and have enjoyed a good operating performance and volumegrowth. During the period, we were pleased to be shortlisted for the new WestMidlands franchise and have recently submitted our bid for the TfL London RailConcession. The increased security arrangements at UK airports and the resulting reductionin airline schedules during the first quarter have affected the productivity andperformance of aviance although cargo volumes at Heathrow, which had also beenimpacted, have begun to recover in recent weeks. The focus remains on improvingthe returns from this business. Meteor continues to refocus its business in thelight of declining airport business. The Board remains confident that the Group will deliver another good performancethis year." For further information, please contact: The Go-Ahead Group plcKeith Ludeman, Group Chief Executive 020 8929 8650Ian Butcher, Group Finance Director 0191 232 3123 Weber Shandwick Square Mile (WSSM) 020 7067 0700Richard Hews/Rachel Taylor/Stephanie Badjonat Note to Editors:Go-Ahead is a key operator of commuter services in London and the South East.Through Govia, it is the franchise holder for Southern and Southeastern. Busservices include London Central and General, companies in North East England,West Midlands, Oxford, Brighton, Poole, Bournemouth, Southampton, Isle of Wightand routes in the Gatwick Airport and Crawley conurbation. The aviation and carparking businesses have nationwide coverage. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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