07 October 2010

Crown Research Institute Scion today announced a before-tax profit of $3.240 million for the year ending 30 June 2010. In the Government’s 2010 Budget, a tax rule change relating to building depreciation required a one-off tax adjustment of $3.170 million, which led to a net loss of $0.978 million.

Scion Chairman Tony Nowell says the before-tax result is a notable achievement in the current economic environment and demonstrates the company’s strong operational performance.

“Our ongoing success has been realised against a backdrop of reform of Crown Research Institutes, and we find ourselves in a good position to respond to the recommendations of the CRI Taskforce.

“Science and innovation is increasingly being called upon to underpin economic growth by supporting businesses and institutions to be more productive and smarter.

“Our strong financial result and consistent profitability over the last three years enables us to confidently invest in staff and infrastructure to support the Government’s aspirations,” Mr Nowell says.

Scion Acting Chief Executive Chelydra Percy says the company’s success is built on a strategy that aligns Scion’s science and commercial focus with the opportunities presented locally, nationally and globally.

“We budgeted a before-tax profit of $2.488 million so a result of $3.240 million is great news. The financial and science success of the organisation is a tribute to the alignment of our Board, the management team and all our staff in seeking to return value for New Zealand. It also shows we made excellent progress in 2009/2010 towards our four strategic goals.

“These goals are very specific. They aim to increase the value and profitability of New Zealand’s forests, optimise the value of marginal land, accelerate development of bioproducts from renewable resources and maximise the quality and impact of our science,” Ms Percy says.

Scion’s complete Annual Report can be downloaded from the company’s website at http://www.scionresearch.com/annual-reports

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