SeaLink tech write-down

SEALINK Travel Group today announced a $1.6 million “non-cash impairment charge” related to UWAI, an IT venture co-founded by SeaLink Chairman Andrew McEvoy, in which the company invested last year.

Just 18 months ago SeaLink bought into UWAI, a mobile app which translates local business content into Chinese, with outgoing CEO Jeff Ellison at the time saying the deal made SeaLink UWAI’s largest client.

McEvoy and two co-founders established UWAI in Dec 2017 - five months before SeaLink acquired its $3.2m stake.

Today the company said despite the concept behind the business remaining sound, UWAI had “failed to achieve milestones as set out in its initial business case”.

The 50% UWAI write-off was revealed as part of SeaLink’s annual results announcement, which saw the company report a 19.5% uplift in sales to $248.8m.

The acquisition of Kingfisher Bay Resort on Qld’s Fraser Island drove the revenue surge, and while underlying net profit after tax was up 6% to $23.4 million, one-off costs saw SeaLink’s pretax profit result decline almost 10% to $24.9 million.

As well as the successful integration of Kingfisher Bay, other highlights of the year included the debut of the new Bruny Island Ferry service in Tas, and the renewal of a ferry contract in Moreton Bay, Qld.

SeaLink said its figures had been impacted by “challenging trading conditions in the key NSW market,” as well as on the Murray River in South Australia.

On Sydney Harbour, softening demand has seen the suspension of SeaLink’s Manly to Barangaroo ferries, effective immediately.

The company also confirmed that an announcement regarding a new CEO was “imminent”.