Loqus Holdings plc - Interim Results

At a meeting held on Monday 25 October, the Board of Directors of Datatrak Holdings plc discussed and approved the interim financial results for the period 1 January to 30 June 2004.

Group turnover for the six month period under review increased by 5.2% to Lm528,456. In the half-yearly report the Directors attribute this increased turnover to Datatrak Systems Ltd., Datatrak Solutions International Ltd. and Datatrak Security Systems Ltd. Increases were also registered in direct costs (+13.9%), local marketing costs (+15.2%) and administrative expenses (+10.5%). This resulted in an operating loss of Lm210,961 compared to a loss of Lm172,104 in the comparative period last year.

Before accounting for depreciation, the Datatrak Group incurred a loss of Lm113,465 (June 2003: loss of Lm60,751). The loss for the period amounted to Lm184,494, a slight increase compared to the loss of Lm180,426 in June 2003.

The Group balance sheet as at 30 June 2004 shows total assets of just over Lm5 million. However the Group’s working capital deficiency increased to Lm872,082. Net asset value per share now stands at 20c6.

In the half yearly report, the Directors noted that during the period, Datatrak Solutions International Ltd. has focused on marketing the web-based fleet tracking software "Datatrak On-Line" in UK. The Company is currently also marketing another software application in UK, "Dispatch IT", which is a dynamic job management and dispatch system. These products offer a complete fleet management and job dispatch solutions to delivery service providers. The first sales have already been realised and significant interest in these products is being observed.

In March 2004 a Datatrak delegation was invited to visit Nigeria. Undertakings with Datatrak Nigeria Limited (DNL) to conclude negotiations and enter into agreement to initiate an In-Country survey, was agreed. (DNL) was formed with Datatrak MENA Ltd. (DML) acquiring a minority shareholding interest. Following the conclusion of the In-Country survey results, DML will be in a position to negotiate the Supply and License Agreement for the installation and commissioning of the first Datatrak network infrastructure.

In June 2004 a Datatrak delegation was invited to resume talks in Tripoli. From the meetings held, it resulted that there is still significant interest in the Datatrak technology to the effect that a letter of intent has been signed. It is anticipated that continuation of the meetings held in June will take place in the coming month.

In February 2004, a delegation including the Chairman of Sudan Master Technology (SMT) and the Chief Executive Officer of Sudan Telecom (ST) visited Datatrak’s offices and a Memorandum Of Understanding was signed underscoring the strong potential interest from Sudan. Market information was exchanged and a marketing plan for the Khartoum region, where the Sudanese business is concentrated, has also been developed. However, the Directors notes that due to the arising internal conflicts in the region, further negotiations have been stalled.