Shannon Foynes Port Company paid CEO €373,000 last year in ‘unpaid bonus’

Pretax profits at the Shannon Foynes Port Company were hit last year by a €373,339 “unpaid bonus” settlement with its chief executive, Patrick Keating.

New accounts show that pretax profits at Shannon Foynes Port Company last year reduced by 20 per cent from €5.3 million to €4.2 million. This followed revenues dipping marginally from €16 million to €15.9 million, after tonnage throughputs contracted by 10.5 per cent to 9.8 million tonnes.

The port company’s profits were impacted following the High Court judgment that Mr Keating be paid €373,339 in unpaid bonuses and interest from 2010 to 2017.

Mr Justice Mark Sanfrey ruled that a failure by the port company directors to use their discretion to pay the bonus “constitutes a breach by the company of the contract which has caused damage and loss to Mr Keating”.

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Ms Justice Sanfrey stated that the company board exercised its discretion not to discharge Mr Keating’s performance-related pay (PRP) “only because of the instructions of the shareholder” as it was the Government minister’s position that PRP should not be discharged to commercial semi-State companies chiefs.

Mr Justice Sanfrey granted judgment in the amount of €297,863 and the port company’s annual report states that the €373,339 total was inclusive of interest. The case was heard in 2021.

Mr Keating has been chief executive since 2006. His pay last year totalled €178,125, comprising a salary of €117,500 and pension contributions and other emoluments of €60,625.

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In his attached report on the port firm’s performance, Mr Keating said that while there was some contraction from the record 2021 financial performance, “we are nevertheless delighted to report very robust earnings for the year”.

“For only the second year in its history, the company recorded Ebitda [earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation] surpassing €7 million and net cash from operations surpassing €6.5 million,” he said.

The company paid a record €400,000 dividend to the State in 2022.

The company employed 51 staff with employee costs totalling €4.5 million. At the end of December, the company had shareholder funds of €58.8 million, including accumulated profits of €31.7 million.