Ementor Delivers Strong Revenue Growth And Operating Profit Of MNOK 120.4, Up 26.5%

Ementor Group Corporate news announcement processed and transmitted by Hugin ASA. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------



Ementor, number one supplier of IT infrastructure products and services in the Nordic and Baltic region, today announced second quarter 2008 results with a strong organic revenue growth of 7.8 % and a strong operating profit of MNOK 120.4, up 26.5% year-over-year. EBITDA margin ended at 4.2%, up from 3.6% in corresponding period last year. Continued exceptional growth in services revenue contributed to the solid results.

"We deliver above market growth on revenue and impressive operating profit with an exceptional growth in services revenue for the Group," says Claus Hougesen, CEO Ementor ASA.

Group EBITDA in second quarter 2008 ended at MNOK 156.6, an increase of 23.8% year-over-year, representing an EBITDA margin of 4.2%. Continued strong performance in services with growth of 27.3% year-over-year, explains the main improvement in EBITDA.

The Group generated solid positive cash flow from operations in second quarter of 2008 of MNOK 167.9 versus minus MNOK 140.8 in the same period last year.

The total revenue of MNOK 3 756.5 represents a growth of 7.8% year-over year, more than double the market growth in the quarter.

Q2 2008 financial performance by geographical segments "The Nordic IT infrastructure market will according to industry analyst IDC continue to experience a 4.7% growth in 2008 in spite some downward forecast adjustments. With our strong market position in all the Nordic countries and Baltics and our presence in 70 cities across the regions, we are well positioned to take full advantage of this market potential," says Claus Hougesen, CEO Ementor ASA. "In addition, the Nordic and Baltic IT infrastructure markets are fragmented and characterised by a large number of small players, which provides interesting acquisition growth opportunities for the Group."

Norway Norway delivers record high EBITDA margin of 7.2% in second quarter 2008 which is up from 5.1% in corresponding period last year. Services revenue grew by 10.8% and reflects an increasing demand for services in the market. Product revenue grew by 1.0% and indicates that no large orders have been rolled out in the public sector. Revenue from the public sector will be compensated in second half of 2008.

Order backlog is strong and up 16% versus same period last year.

The main reasons for improvement in EBITDA from MNOK 38.8 to MNOK 56.9, up 46.6%, are improvements in product margin from 14.0% to 15.7% together with increase in services revenue and continued cost focus.

Denmark Denmark continues to deliver strong performance and second quarter EBITDA ended at MNOK 50.4 (3.8% margin) compared to MNOK 38.0 (3.4% margin) in same period last year. This represents an EBITDA improvement of 32.6%. Revenue grew by 17.4% (20.0% in local currency) and reflects strong growth in both services and products. Services grew by 42.3% and mainly explain the improvement in results.

Increase in operating expenses is due to the hiring of more billable consultants. 60 billable consultants have been hired since second quarter of 2007. Denmark reports strong order backlog moving into third quarter 2008.

Takeover from TDC in June 2008 of all sales and administration of mobile phone terminals to enterprise segment and administration of TDC broadband employee business, is in process of being well integrated.

Sweden Sweden reports second quarter EBITDA of MNOK 45.4, representing EBITDA margin of 4.0% which is up from MNOK 41.3 or 3.5% margin in corresponding period last year. Revenue in second quarter of MNOK 1 136.8 grew in local currency by 5.4% adjusted for loss of employee home-pc revenue due to legislative changes. Services revenue grew by 35.8% in local currency and demonstrates strong demand for value-added services. Increase in operating expenses reflects hiring of 166 consultants compared to same period last year. The strong growth in services mainly explains the improvement in results.

In June 2008, Atea Sweden entered into agreement to acquire all shares in Spintop AB for MNOK 43.1 on cash and debt free basis. Spintop is specialized within automation of IT processes and has budgeted revenue of MNOK 39.7 and EBITDA of MNOK 11.5 in 2008. The company has offices in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmø.

Finland Revenue in second quarter was MNOK 387.4 which is up from MNOK 350.4 in second quarter 2007, a growth of 10.6% representing a strong growth in both services and products. EBITDA ended at MNOK 0.5 which is same level as last year. Revenue growth and increased market pressure continues to be main focus moving forward in the Finnish market, which is a market with significant potential for the Group.

Increase in operating expenses is mainly due to hiring more service people.

Juha Sihvonen, new Managing Director, started May 1, 2008.

The Baltics The Baltics reports a record high EBITDA margin of 7.1% in second quarter 2008 which is up from 6.3% in second quarter of 2007. Revenue is more or less flat compared to last year. Last year second quarter included a large IT infrastructure project to Schengen with a revenue of MNOK 21.6.

Due to worsening of the macroeconomic picture in the Baltic countries, projects are being postponed in the private sector. However, there is still significant EU funding available for the public sector, so continuously investments are expected. Gross margin in second quarter 2008 is up from 17.9% in second quarter 2007 to 22.0% in second quarter 2008. This explains the improvement in EBITDA from MNOK 7.6 to MNOK 8.3.

Outlook The Group's strategy is to further strengthen its position as the leading Nordic and Baltic supplier of IT infrastructure products and services.

The Nordic IT industry will, according to IDC forecasts, experience positive growth rates of 4-5% during 2008-2010, in spite of some minor downward adjustments. Important technology trends, such as Unified Communication, virtualisation and "Green IT" - areas in which the Ementor Group has established a strong focus - will also help fuel IT investments going forward. In addition to organic growth potential for the Group, a fragmented IT infrastructure market continues to provide interesting acquisition growth opportunities.

Based on the continued strong financial performance in Q2 2008 and positive market growth rates for IT infrastructure, the Board believes that the strategic direction chosen for the Group provides good prerequisites for continued growth and value creation.



The quarterly report and presentation is available at www.ementor.com/reports The press conference is available through webcast at www.ementor.com/webcast The Stock Exchange Announcement is available at www.ementor.com/ose





For further information, please contact: Claus Hougesen, CEO Ementor ASA, mobile + 45 25 43 51 62 Rune Falstad, CFO Ementor ASA, mobile + 47 90 61 44 82

About Ementor The Ementor Group is the leading Nordic and Baltic supplier of IT infrastructure products and services. The Group has more than 4000 employees and is present in 70 cities in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Russia. The Group has revenue of approximately NOK 14 billion and uses the Ementor, Atea, Topnordic and Sonex brands in its business. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. www.ementor.com

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Ementor Group PB. 6472 Etterstad Oslo Norway

WKN: 884578 ; ISIN: NO0004822503; ;



LINK: http://hugin.info/85/R/1235856/263550.pdf

Ementor Group

www.ementor.com

ISIN: NO0004822503

Stock Identifier: OSE.EME

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