STATE BROADCASTER RTÉ expects to make a “small breakeven-level surplus” in 2010 after recording a loss after tax of €16.5 million last year.

RTÉ also hinted at a further restructuring of the business in 2010 as it seeks to keep a lid on its expenses.

The details emerged yesterday with the publication of RTÉ’s 2009 annual report, which was placed before the Houses of the Oireachtas.

The broadcaster said that, as the commercial revenue market “remains fragile” in 2010, a “further range of cost reduction/continuous improvement projects are being developed”.

“It is intended that these measures will be used as a means of at least partially offsetting the adverse impact should unforeseen further revenue declines occur and otherwise will be available to support programme investment.”

The deficit in 2009 was considerably lower than the €68 million that had originally been forecast by the broadcaster at the height of the economic recession early last year.

The better-than-expected financial performance followed a series of “cost-reduction and revenue-protection measures” to offset the shortfall.

RTÉ total revenues declined by 15 per cent to €374.9 million.

Its commercial revenue fell by 27.5 per cent to €174.7 million while licence fee income was stable at just more than €200 million.

The station’s operating costs fell 13 per cent to €400 million.

In addition, the Donnybrook-based broadcaster spent €11.3 million in restructuring costs on an early retirement and redundancy programme for staff.

Group staff costs amounted to €161.3 million last year, compared with €176.1 million in 2008.

At the end of 2009, RTÉ employed 2,035 full-time equivalent staff, compared with 2,144 a year earlier.

Director general Cathal Goan, who is preparing to leave RTÉ, was paid €326,000 in 2009.

This sum of money was 6.3 per cent down on the total of €348,000 that he earned the previous year.

Board members were paid €123,000 in total, compared with €179,000 a year earlier.

In terms of its commercial income, RTÉ took the biggest hit in advertising.

This fell to €131.7 million last year from €195.6 million in 2008.

Sponsorship income fell to just under €9 million from €9.4 million a year earlier.

Transmission income was flat at €15 million, while merchandising and content revenues were unchanged at €10 million.

RTÉ cut its spending on in-house productions last year. The broadcaster spent €209 million, compared with €245 million in 2008.

The amount spent on overseas programmes rose marginally to just under €25 million.

The accounts show that RTÉ television division recorded the biggest loss at €15.9 million, although this was down on the €17.6 million recorded in 2008.

By contrast, radio made a profit of €700,000 last year.

But this was just one-quarter of the surplus radio achieved in 2008.

The group’s network arm, which handles transmissions, achieved a profit of €8.3 million in 2009, a figure which was unchanged on the previous year.