Archived article
Please note that tax, investment, pension and ISA rules can change and the information and any views contained in this article may now be inaccurate.
Training technology group Pennant International forecast a first-half loss after its performance was hampered by contract issues with General Dynamics.
Losses before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation for the six months through June were expected to be around £1 million, compared to year-on-year losses of £2.5 million, Pennant said.
Revenue was seen rising to £7.4 million, up from £6.3 million, in a year that Pennant said would be second-half weighted.
The company said its overall performance was satisfactory, given the economic backdrop, with progress made across the majority of contracted programmes and cost savings starting to be realised.
But it said its performance was significantly impacted by factors relating to its contract with General Dynamics for the Ajax training devices.
These factors included the engineering complexity of emulating a vehicle, which itself remained under ongoing review and development, and deficiencies in the provision of data.
Pennant said the contract also was affected by challenges within its own supply chain, including delays and increases in the prices of parts and materials, and workplace restrictions due to Covid-19.
'The company anticipates that its financial performance will improve significantly in the second half and expects to make an EBITA profit for the current six months to the 2021 year-end,' it said.
'On this basis, the company's trading remains in line with market expectations for the year as a whole.'