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Dear Shareholders,
Throughout the 2006 fiscal year, the Supervisory Board
closely supervised and advised the Executive Board's
management of the Company, and performed the tasks
and responsibilities incumbent upon it by law, under the
Company's Articles of Association and under the Supervisory
Board's Code of Procedure. It was directly involved in
all decisions of fundamental importance to the Company.
The Executive Board provided the Supervisory Board with
full, timely and regular verbal and written reporting on the
Company's and the Group's financial situation and development,
their business policy plans, corporate planning,
risk position and risk management, as well as specific material
transactions. Any departures from the planned or targeted
course of business were explained in detail by the
Executive Board and examined by the Supervisory Board.
Where the Supervisory Board's approval was necessary for
management actions in accordance with statutory or other
regulations, the Supervisory Board received full written information
from the Executive Board. The Supervisory Board
covered this reporting in depth at its meetings, discussed
it with the Executive Board and took the necessary decisions.
There was no cause to institute measures, such as
inspection of the Company's books or documents, under
the first clause of Section 111 (2) of the German Stock Corporations
Act (AktG).
In the 2006 fiscal year, the Supervisory Board met six times -
including one constituent meeting and one extraordinary
meeting - and concluded on each occasion that the management
of the Company was both proper and appropriate.
All Supervisory Board members attended at least half of
the meetings. Outside of its scheduled meetings, the Supervisory
Board was kept fully abreast of projects as well
as plans of special urgency or importance to the Company.
Where necessary, Supervisory Board members were
asked to approve specific actions by way of circularization.
The Chairman of the Supervisory Board also maintained
regular contact with the Executive Board outside of meetings
and kept himself informed of developments in the
business situation and key transactions.
In the period under review, the Supervisory Board focused
on value-oriented Group management based on the RONA
return on capital metric. One of the key issues under discussion
was the Group's fundamental strategic orientation
toward a business model in which activities with long-term,
constant income flows (PPP projects and services) supplement
the cyclical construction business with its generally
more volatile income flows. In addition, the Supervisory
Board concentrated on the consequences for acquisition
policy, for enhancing the value of the infrastructure and
airport portfolio in the long term and for strategic development
in these markets. The Supervisory Board regularly
addressed the competitive situation, the different trends in
the construction markets of Europe, America and Asia/Australia
and the benefits and impacts of integrating the Group's
core business at a global level. An overarching topic of
discussion was the need to develop and train qualified
new talent and personnel.
In the Airport division, the focus was on expanding the investment
partnership for airport operator activities as a
platform for further investments and on enhancing the value
of the individual airport holdings. The Supervisory Board
looked closely at the expansion of the portfolio and, also
in its extraordinary meeting, at the planned acquisition of
Budapest Airport. Other major topics under discussion
were the favorable operational development of the airport
holdings and active support for management in developing
new sources of income, the acquisition of a blocking
minority in the Athens airport company and expansion of
the holding in Sydney Airport.
Anual Report 2006 english (3,60 MByte)
