Cybercom closes office in Norway
12/28/2006 8:00 AM EST
Cybercom is shutting down its Norwegian operation and closing its office outside Oslo. Costs for this will be swallowed in 4Q 2006 but the closure will have no negative effect on EBIT for 2006.
The Norwegian operation was part of Cybercom’s year-end 2003 acquisition of Consafe Infotech. The operation reported losses, and long-term turnaround of company profit has been difficult to achieve – even though the operation has taken requisite measures. Since the 2003 acquisition, the number of employees has dropped. Now, the company employs just eight persons.
”Our operation in Norway is small,” says Peter Keller-Andreasen, Cybercom’s acting president and CEO, “and it’s difficult to run a profitable operation without a critical mass. Management intended to grow via acquisition, but this didn’t work out. From a strategic perspective, there’s no point in maintaining a presence on this market. We must have a critical mass and invest in growth for markets on which we are present. We didn’t succeed in Norway, and we have to face the consequences.”
Several employees in the Norwegian operation have assignments in Cybercom’s operation in southern Sweden and may be offered employment there. A subcontracting partnership could also be a solution. Maximum closure costs are estimated to SEK 3.5 million; these figures will be reported in Cybercom’s 2006 preliminary year-end report, which will be published on 8 February 2007.
For more information, please contact
Peter Keller-Andreasen, acting president and CEO, Cybercom +45 294 83 800
Kristina Svensson, communications manager, Cybercom +46 708 644 702