EX-99.1 2 exhibit1.htm EX-99.1 EX-99.1

CONSOLIDATED WATER CO. LTD. FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS MORE THAN DOUBLE ON 53% REVENUE INCREASE

GEORGE TOWN, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands (May 9, 2006). Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (Nasdaq National Market: “CWCO”), which develops and operates seawater conversion plants and water distribution systems in areas where naturally occurring supplies of potable water are scarce or nonexistent, today reported record revenues and earnings for the first quarter of 2006.

(Note: All per-share amounts in this press release are adjusted for a 2-for-1 stock split distributed to shareholders August 25, 2005.)

For the quarter ended March 31, 2006, total revenue increased 52.6% to approximately $9.2 million, compared with approximately $6.1 million in the first quarter of 2005. Net income increased 124% to $3,078,011, or $0.24 per diluted share, versus $1,374,051, or $0.115 per diluted share, in the quarter ended March 31, 2005. The weighted average number of fully diluted shares outstanding during the most recent quarter totaled 12,599,001, versus 11,919,516 in the year-earlier quarter.

Retail water sales increased 61.4% to approximately $5.1 million in the first quarter of 2006, compared with approximately $3.1 million in the corresponding period of the previous year. Bulk water sales rose 39.1% to approximately $3.7 million, versus approximately $2.7 million in prior-year quarter. Revenue from services increased 91.2% to $440,560 in the most recent quarter, compared with $230,456 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2005.

Gross margin on Retail sales improved to 71.3% in the quarter ended March 31, 2006, versus 59.9% in the first quarter of 2005, while the gross margin on Bulk sales expanded to 22.2%, compared with 16.2% in the prior-year period.

“Retail water sales in the Grand Cayman market have recovered dramatically during the past year, as the island recovered from the damage wrought by Hurricane Ivan in September 2004,” stated Rick McTaggart, President and Chief Executive Officer of Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. “Additional demand has resulted from the opening of the Ritz Carlton Hotel and Golf Course and several new condominium projects in the Seven Mile Beach service area, along with the re-seeding of other golf courses on Grand Cayman Island. An increase of 39.1% in our Bulk water sales during the first quarter reflects higher demand from The Water and Sewerage Corporation of The Bahamas and from Water Authority – Cayman, our two largest bulk water customers. Service revenues also rose from the prior-year period, as we generated additional engineering fees for work on a new water plant on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands.”

“We are currently evaluating whether Consolidated needs to expand production capacity in Grand Cayman before next year’s ‘high’ tourist season (December 2006-April 2007),” continued McTaggart. “Meanwhile, Phase 2 of the construction of the Blue Hills water desalination plant in Nassau, The Bahamas, is nearing completion, and we expect to begin delivering additional water to our customer, the Water and Sewerage Corporation of the Bahamas, later this month. We have made excellent progress in resolving the membrane fouling issue that has plagued our Windsor plant in Nassau. Water production at the plant has been restored to near design-rated capacity, and we are no longer subject to the production shortfall penalties that impacted our operating results during much of last year.”

The Company will host a conference call at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Thursday, May 11, 2006. Shareholders and other interested parties may participate in the conference call by dialing 877-692-2591 (international/local participants dial 973-582-2845) and referencing the ID code 7348213, a few minutes before 11:30 a.m. EDT on May 11, 2006. A replay of the conference call will be available two hours after the completion of the conference call from May 11, 2006 until May 18, 2006 by dialing 877-519-4471 (international/local participants dial 973-341-3080) and entering the conference ID 7348213.

Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. is engaged in the development and operation of seawater conversion plants and water distribution systems in areas of the world where naturally occurring supplies of potable water are scarce or nonexistent. Consolidated currently operates water production and/or distribution facilities in the Cayman Islands, The British Virgin Islands, Barbados, Belize and The Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

The common stock of Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol “CWCO”. Additional information on the Company is available on its website at http://www.cwco.com.

This press release includes statements that may constitute “forward-looking” statements, usually containing the words “believe”, “estimate”, “project”, “intend”, “expect” or similar expressions. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, continued acceptance of the Company’s products and services in the marketplace, changes in its relationship with the Governments of the jurisdictions in which it operates, the ability to successfully secure contracts for water projects in other countries, the ability to develop and operate such projects profitably and the Company’s ability to manage growth and other risks detailed in the Company’s periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release.

For further information, please contact:

Frederick W. McTaggart, President and CEO at (345) 945-4277 or via e-mail at info@cwco.com
http://www.cwco.com
or
RJ Falkner & Company, Inc., Investor Relations Counsel at (800) 377-9893 or via e-mail at
info@rjfalkner.com

(Financial Highlights Follow)

1

CONSOLIDATED WATER CO. LTD.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(Expressed in United States Dollars)

                 
    March 31,   December 31, 2005
    2006 (unaudited)   (audited)
ASSETS
               
Current assets
               
Cash and cash equivalents
  $ 4,819,995     $ 11,955,589  
Accounts receivable
    7,903,924       5,659,975  
Inventory
    2,565,097       2,032,209  
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
    611,721     858,870
Current portion of loans receivable
    730,495       669,855  
 
               
Total current assets
    16,631,232       21,176,498  
Loans receivable, including $1,600,000 due from affiliate
    3,850,750       2,436,702  
Property, plant and equipment, net
    32,240,180       32,667,615  
Construction in progress, including interest of $562,500 and $375,000 in 2006 and 2005, respectively
    19,150,771       12,172,402  
Other assets
    506,299       534,368  
Investments in affiliates
    11,109,005       11,317,731  
Intangible assets
    4,264,812       4,491,501  
Goodwill
    3,568,374       3,568,374  
 
               
Total assets
  $ 91,321,423     $ 88,365,191  
 
               
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
               
Current liabilities
               
Dividends payable
  $ 865,131     $ 828,709  
Accounts payable and other current liabilities
    3,919,532       3,939,538  
Current portion of long term debt
    3,472,330       3,472,330  
 
               
Total current liabilities
    8,256,993       8,240,577  
Long term debt, including Series A bond issue of $10,000,000
    18,562,063       19,378,212  
Security deposits and other liabilities
    483,617       349,628  
Minority interest in Waterfields Company Limited
    825,910       833,695  
 
               
Total liabilities
    28,128,583       28,802,112  
 
               
Stockholders’ equity
               
Redeemable preferred stock, $0.60 par value. Authorized 200,000 shares; issued and outstanding 32,304 shares at March 31, 2006 and December 31, 2005
    19,382       19,382  
Class A common stock, $0.60 par value. Authorized 19,680,000 shares; issued and outstanding 12,379,269 shares at March 31, 2006 and 12,181,778 shares at December 31, 2005
    7,427,562       7,309,066  
Class B common stock, $0.60 par value. Authorized 120,000 shares
           
Stock and options earned but not issued
    66,377       28,802  
Additional paid-in capital
    36,478,128       35,338,235  
Retained earnings
    19,201,391       16,867,594  
 
               
Total stockholders’ equity
    63,192,840       59,563,079  
 
               
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
  $ 91,321,423     $ 88,365,191  
 
               

2

CONSOLIDATED WATER CO. LTD.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (UNAUDITED)
(Expressed in United States Dollars)

                 
    Three Months Ended March 31,
    2006   2005
Retail water sales
  $ 5,054,149     $ 3,131,728  
Bulk water sales
    3,748,855       2,695,301  
Service revenue
    440,560       230,456  
 
               
Total revenue
    9,243,564       6,057,485  
 
               
Retail cost of sales
    (1,449,393 )     (1,255,117 )
Bulk cost of sales
    (2,917,097 )     (2,259,324 )
Service cost of sales
    (103,726 )     (145,184 )
 
               
Total cost of sales
    (4,470,216 )     (3,659,625 )
 
               
Gross profit
    4,773,348       2,397,860  
General and administrative expenses
    (2,123,795 )     (1,423,803 )
 
               
Income from operations
    2,649,553       974,057  
 
               
Other income (expense):
               
Interest income
    28,705       14,317  
Interest expense
    (214,972 )     (186,674 )
Other income
    198,281       196,469  
Equity in earnings of affiliate
    415,989       354,408  
 
               
Other income, net
    428,003       378,520  
 
               
Income before income taxes and minority interest
    3,077,556       1,352,577  
Income tax benefit (expense)
    (7,330 )     23,399  
Minority interest recovery (expense)
    7,785       (1,925 )
 
               
Net income
  $ 3,078,011     $ 1,374,051  
 
               
Basic earnings per common share
  $ 0.25     $ 0.12  
 
               
Diluted earnings per common share
  $ 0.24     $ 0.115  
 
               
Dividends declared per common share
  $ 0.06     $ 0.0575  
 
               
Weighted average number of common shares used in the determination of:
               
Basic earnings per share
    12,216,870       11,552,116  
 
               
Diluted earnings per share
    12,599,001       11,919,516  
 
               

3

CONSOLIDATED WATER CO. LTD.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (UNAUDITED)
(Expressed in United States Dollars)

                 
    Three Months Ended March 31,
    2006   2005
Net cash flows provided by operating activities
  $ 1,073,669     $ 989,300  
 
               
Cash flows provided by (used in) investing activities
               
Purchase of property, plant and equipment
    (406,452 )     (571,047 )
Construction in progress
    (7,623,980 )     (951,044 )
Distribution of income from affiliate
    757,500        
Loan to affiliate
    (800,000 )      
Collections of loans receivable
    222,312       278,456  
 
               
Net cash used in investing activities
    (7,850,620 )     (1,243,635 )
 
               
Cash flows provided by (used in) financing activities
               
Dividends paid
    (707,792 )     (662,905 )
Proceeds from issuance of preferred stock
          1,143,468  
Proceeds from exercise of stock options
    1,165,298        
Principal repayments of long term debt
    (816,149 )     (813,556 )
 
               
Net cash used in financing activities
    (358,643 )     (332,993 )
 
               
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents
    (7,135,594 )     (587,328 )
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period
    11,955,589       9,216,908  
 
               
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period
  $ 4,819,995     $ 8,629,580  
 
               
Interest paid in cash
  $ 196,881     $ 161,037  
 
               
Interest received in cash
  $ 19,660     $ 15,804  
 
               

4