Dell's Irish subsidiaries make €94m pretax profit

THREE OF Dell's Irish subsidiaries made a combined pretax profit of €94 million in the year to February 2nd, 2007, according to accounts files recently by the companies. They reported a combined turnover for the year of €7,551 million.

Computer maker Dell has a number of Irish subsidiaries, some of whom file accounts with the Companies Registration Office. It employs more than 4,000 staff in Ireland and accounts for close to 6 per cent of gross national product.

The accounts for Dell Direct, which is based in Cherrywood, Co Dublin, and has one of the largest customer call centres in Ireland, show it had a turnover of €150 million in the year to February 2nd, 2007. It made a pretax profit of €42.9 million, up from €11 million the previous year. The tax charge was €7 million.

The accounts state the company is engaged in the provision of data processing services, telemarketing sales and ancillary post-sales technical support. The Cherrywood centre services the Irish market and the home and small/medium-sized business sector in the UK.

During the financial year the company sold its property in Bray, Co Wicklow, recording a gain of €27 million, according to the accounts.

The average number of people employed during the year was 1,569, at a cost to the company of €85 million.

Dell Products, which sells and distributes Dell products, made a pretax profit of $52 million (€32.8 million) in the year to February 2nd, 2007, and paid $10.5 million in tax. Turnover was $11,698 million, a $405 million increase on the previous year.

The accounts state the principal activity of the company was the sale and distribution of Dell manufactured systems and third-party manufactured computer option products. These were sold to end customers through group companies acting as agents, and to other group companies, according to the accounts.

Commission and other costs paid to group companies in this regard totalled $1,336 million, according to the accounts.

In the fiscal year, revenue growth occurred primarily in France and Germany. All product categories experienced growth "with the exception of desktop PCs", according to the accounts.

A geographical breakdown showed sales in Europe of $11,510 million and $188 million in the "rest of the world".

The company employed 1,062 people, at a cost of $20 million.

Dell Research, which develops "inventions relating to the manufacturing of personal computers and peripheral equipment", according to the accounts, made a pretax profit of $29 million, down from $31 million the previous year. It paid no tax on either year's profits.

Income from patent royalty was $31 million in the year to February 2nd, 2007, down from $32.5 million the previous year.

The accounts state that on December 6th, 2006, the company's Dutch parent, Dell Products Europe BV, terminated its patent royalty agreement with the company.