Sogreah celebrated two special anniversaries in 2008: 100 years of history and 10 years of independence.
The book we published at the end of 2008, "Sogreah, passionately committed", recounts the experience we have gained in over 100,000 projects carried out on all five continents since the company was created in the early part of the 20th century. A century full of passion, innovations and diversification that, beginning with a core activity in hydroelectric structures, enabled the company to expand into all fields connected with water, energy, the environment and urban development.
The 10 years of independence are those that the company has enjoyed since the LBO that enabled it to leave the Alcatel group at the end of 1998. During these 10 years, Sogreah's turnover has grown uninterruptedly and its workforce, which stood at 400 in 1998, has increased to over 1200 people working in a network of 30 offices in France and 15 others internationally. But these past 10 years have been primarily ones of independence thanks to the fact that the company's managers and employees are its only shareholders.
Unfortunately, 2008 was not just a year for celebration, far from it. It will go down in history as the year in which the world faced an unprecedented crisis in the financial, banking, economic, environmental and other spheres. All sectors of activity have been affected.
And yet Sogreah did more than simply ride out the crisis. With a consolidated turnover of €104m, up 7.3% in comparison with 2007, and a net result of €5.2m, which was identical to that of 2007, the company demonstrated its ability to continue working in sectors with a high value added. The turnover in France amounted to €58m, a 3% increase on 2007, while international activity continued its recent growth and finished the year at €46m, a 13% increase on 2007! Work in hand at the end of 2008 stood at €113m, i.e. the equivalent of 13 months of turnover. These good indicators, combined with a comfortable cash flow situation and almost no debt, give us every reason to face the particularly difficult period ahead with confidence.
This resistance in the face of crisis certainly has something to do with the two anniversaries we celebrated in 2008. Sogreah's historic know-how and experience place us in a particularly solid position to face today's uncertainties. Our independence has enabled us to keep a cool head during the prosperous years and not to compromise our future by pursuing hazardous short-term strategies.
A further reason for this solidity is to be found in the balance between our activity in France and internationally and the diversity of our range of expertise (water, energy, the environment, urban development), all at the service of sustainable, intelligent development. Yet another reason lies in our continuous investment in research and innovation in spite of the crisis, or more precisely because of it, as innovation is always the best response to the uncertainties of tomorrow.
But the real key to Sogreah's success is of course the wealth of its human capital, the know-how of its employees and their commitment to a company of which most of them are shareholders. In 2008, Sogreah distributed one third of its operating result to its employees in the form of dividends and profit-related bonuses. This is certainly the best weapon for combating the present crisis, which is liable to be long and which we are approaching with considerable prudence and care, but especially with great confidence in the future.
J. Gaillard
Chairman and CEO
Sogreah Group