The CEO of Australian slot machine developer Ainsworth Game Technology says the company expects to record a loss of around AU$15 million for the six months to 31 December 2020 due to ongoing global COVID-19 restrictions.
The update, provided to shareholders at Ainsworth’s 2020 Annual General Meeting on Thursday, comes after it had previously revealed a net loss after tax of AU$43 million for the year ended 30 June 2020 on a 36% decline on sales revenue.
Despite signs of recovery, with casinos around the world having started reopening, Levy said FY21 was shaping up as a year of two distinct halves.
“Half 1 will be about safety and security through the reopening phase; Half 2 will be about recuperation and development as we enter the ‘new normal’ phase.
“As a result, for 1H21 we expect to report a loss before tax for the group, excluding the impacts of foreign exchange and on-off items, of approximately AU$15 million which is in line with the company’s expectations given the effect of the September quarter.”
Levy noted that the company’s priority was protecting Ainsworth in the event of a protracted downturn and outlines a series of cost-cutting initiatives already implemented in 2020.
As previously reported by Inside Asian Gaming, the company reduced its workforce by 107 in August, creating an annual cost saving of AU$10 million through 67 redundancies and 40 eliminated roles.
Levy noted that other cost reduction measures included fee reductions by board members, salary reductions by senior management and rent relief provided at the company’s Sydney headquarters facility by the property’s owner and company founder, Len Ainsworth.
Reduced workforce hours were also put in place, however Levy said a global reintroduction of normal working hours in the R&D sector had commenced “to ensure that the timing for new game approvals are achieved in preparation for when markets recover from COVID-19.”
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