SBB Real Estate: Significant decline in earnings
SBB posted a loss of CHF 617 million in the Corona year 2020. The Real Estate Division posted a result of 244 million, compared with 339 million in the previous year.
The Corona pandemic hit SBB hard. The company has to post a consolidated result of -617 million CHF (previous year: +463 million) - the biggest loss since SBB was spun off from the federal government into a joint stock company. According to SBB, the result of the Real Estate Division before compensation payments to the infrastructure (150 million) and the payment to the pension fund (84 million) amounts to 244 million. In the previous year, the figure was 339 million. Rental income from third parties declined from 552 million to 541 million.
Overall, one third less customers were recorded in the stations, partly because there were fewer travelers, and partly because of the ordered closure of stores. Third-party sales in the stations had decreased by 26.8%. During the lockdown, rents were waived or reduced, SBB said.
SBB's net interest-bearing debt increased by 1.5 billion in 2020. Due to the low operating cash flow (EBITDA) and the increased debt, the debt coverage ratio is 21.6, which is above the maximum limit of 6.5 required by the federal government. To safeguard solvency, the federal government increased the credit limit by 550 million, and the federal government and parliament also approved support for public transport in the second half of 2020. In the own-account areas of long-distance transport and real estate, SBB must bear the revenue shortfalls itself.
