Go-Ahead Group PLC (LSE:GOG) said it is setting aside £30mln for a potential penalty from the Department for Transport relating to failings in the way the company ran the London Southeastern (LSER) franchise.
Financial errors in relation to the LSER contract led to the company being stripped of the franchise in October last year.
An independent review has identified £51.3mln as being due to the Department for Transport, of which £49.2mln has already been paid, Go-Ahead said in a statement.
The company today reported its results for the year to 3 July 2021. A delay in the publication of the results led to Go-Ahead's share being suspended in December last year.
The company reported adjusted operating profits of £115.5mln for the year, compared with a restated £76.4mln in the previous year.
Pretax losses came in at £6.9mln versus a restated loss of £39.5mln.
A strong performance in the Bus and GTR businesses were overshadowed by the LSER issue and challenges in International Rail, where Go-Ahead has made an onerous contract provision of £66.2mln in respect of its rail contract in Norway to cover potential losses resulting from a possible reduction in government support of rail services.
The company said current trading is in line with its previous guidance. There has been a “reassuring recovery” in passenger numbers following a temporary decline as a result of the emergence of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, with regional bus volumes currently around 80% of pre-pandemic levels.
"It's been a very challenging year for Go-Ahead and our shareholders, for which I apologise, on behalf of the board,” said chief executive Christian Schreyer, who joined the company in November last year, after it lost the LSER franchise.
“I'm pleased to be publishing these results today and I am looking firmly to the future with optimism.”