Intralot announced its first quarter 2009 results

EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortization) decreased by 36.4% to 46.1 million euros compared to 72.5 million euros in first quarter 2008. Earnings Before Taxes (EBT), were 44.2 million euros, 35.2% lower than first quarter 2008, while Earnings After Taxes and after minorities (EAT-am) decreased by 38.5% to 22.1 million euros from 35.9 million euros in first quarter last year.

Revenues for the parent company were 27.3 million euros in first quarter 2009, 2.5% lower than first quarter 2008. EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortization) for the period stood at 5.1 million euros, and Earnings After Taxes (EAT) were 2.9 million euros.

Commenting on first quarter 2009 results, its CEO, Constantinos Antonopoulos, stated: “Intralot in the first quarter of the year managed to deliver satisfactory results, amidst a global economy recession and a negative influence by unfavorable FX movements in countries that the Company operates. Specifically, operations in Turkey, Romania, Poland and South Africa were affected by percentage rates that ranged between high single-digit to the mid-twenties. Moreover, the Group incurred start-up costs in several countries, including the Netherlands, some US states (including Ohio), the Caribbean and Brazil.

Intralot has won three new tenders in the US (Louisiana, Ohio and New Hampshire) where the company has established a strong presence with nine contracts. A very important strategic development is the launch of Intralot Interactive, which aims to exploit the great potential of the licensed interactive market, focusing on both B2B and B2C opportunities.

This move is ahead of the controlled market liberalization wave that started in Italy and Spain and is expected to continue in France, Denmark, Switzerland and other countries. In this direction, the firm signed a significant cooperation agreement regarding the Italian market with PartyGaming, the world’s leading online gaming company, for online poker tournaments. Also, the Greek company entered the Croatian market with a contract for interactive gaming services.

The targets of the Group for 2009 include the improvement of the profitability of existing contracts, the preservation of its leading position in new contract wins and the continuous development of new technologies. Moreover, Intralot, through strategic alliances, will explore the upcoming significant privatization projects and will focus on market liberalizations and the new Internet market opportunities. Finally, the group’s strong financial position and the attractive valuations, as a result of the crisis, create very interesting acquisition opportunities that the company is evaluating very carefully.”