Financial Performance

Operating income increased to €810 million in 2024 (2023: €736 million). Added value growth was 10% (2023: 8%) with organic added value growth being 13% (2023: 10%) yielding an added value of €669 million (2023: €606 million).

The areas in which we direct our activities support the effective functioning of society and are in demand. Climate change is driving the transition to renewable energy and placing an urgent focus on resilience. More data centres are needed to respond to growth in digital services and AI. Many countries are facing the challenge of renewing and renovating infrastructure.
Projections for the aviation industry indicate growth in passenger and cargo sectors will continue. At the same time, the industry is addressing the challenge of becoming more circular and achieving net-zero emissions. There is ongoing progress in meeting the fundamental human right to clean drinking water and sanitation.

Our strategy positions our activities within these leading markets. We apply and adapt our knowledge and expertise globally. It supports our growth even when geopolitical events, the challenging economic environment, and inflation continue to create uncertainty and tight economic conditions. These prompt new questions from our clients as resilience, flexibility and adaptation become ever more urgent. Our multi-disciplinary approach which embraces the limitless possibilities of technology and digitalisation enables us to respond to these increasingly complex needs.

Strong sales aligned with our business growth translated into utilisation rates in line with budgeted expectations.

We achieved a strong increase in profitability. EBITA recurring ended the year at €60.1 million (2023: €51.6 million). All business lines contributed to this achievement and demonstrated the success of our strategy, Stronger25. Each Global Leading Market delivered significant growth, in some cases reaching double digits. In addition, simplifying processes and focusing on operational efficiency enabled our corporate groups to operate more efficiently even while the business grew, coming in below budget. Emphasis on risk management led to a significant improvement in project results.
EBITA recurring / added value margin is 9.0% (2023: 8.5%). Our net result significantly outperformed budget, growing to €41.0 million (2023: €24.8 million).

The year saw strong and sustained growth across our business lines. By adopting digital ways of working and exploring the potential of AI we increased productivity and innovation. Digital technologies are just as important in the services and solutions we offer our clients. Starting January 2025, we integrated our digital business line within each of the other business lines to work together with our domain experts. Our two acquisitions mid and end of 2024 will make more significant contributions to our performance in 2025 as well as streamlining our portfolio through further focusing our activities where our services are in demand and where we offer globally leading expertise.

Our financial position is healthy, with an equity ratio of 50% (2023: 48%), a cash position of €198 million at the end of the year (2023: €181 million) and days sales outstanding (DSO) of 69 days (2023: 73). Our free cash flow in 2024 was €15.7 million (2023: €33.8 million). During the year, we invested €22.8 million in renovations and refurbishment of our Paris-proof offices, including the renovation of our iconic and historic office building in Delft. This office will open mid-2025.