Woosh on a star as network takes hit

Wednesday 7th April 2010

Broadband provider Woosh Wireless has written down its network assets value by up to 70% as it looks for new technologies to provide a springboard for future growth.

The privately-owned company announced a $38.26 million loss for the year, according to the company’s financial statements ended June 30 and lodged with the Companies’ Office last week, after it took an impairment loss on its books of $34.34 million.

“Woosh had a year where the business was stabilised, costs were cut and cash flows carefully managed, so that a positive operating cash flow was achieved in the last quarter of the 2008/2009 financial year,” chairman Rod Inglis said.

“In that quarter the company was EBITDA positive before unrealised exchange movement by $188,000 and it has maintained a modestly positive cash flow performance, month on month, in the 2009/2010 financial year.”

Though its network assets, mainly cell towers, have been written down to represent the returns they are generating, Inglis said their value could be increased in the future with a WiMAX or 4G wireless deployment.

“Woosh has developed detailed plans for a WiMAX build and believes that these are very complementary to the Government’s Ultra Fast Broadband and Rural Broadband Initiative where it is planned that it will invest $1.8 billion,” he said.

Still, the company entered the wireless broadband business “too early, the industry is gathering momentum all the time,” said Inglis. “Woosh believes it will be able to participate profitably in this growth.”

Businesswire.co.nz

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