Pretax profits at the Tuam business working at the cutting edge of driverless car technology declined by 64 per cent to €29.19 million in 2018.
According to accounts filed by Connaught Electronics Ltd, trading as Valeo Vision Systems, the company recorded the sharp drop in pretax profits as revenues dipped by 2.5 per cent from €278.8 million to €271.8 million.
The main factor behind the drop in pretax profits was the company’s investment income sliding from €50.6 million in 2017 to €2.1 million in 2018.
Investment income in 2017 largely comprised a gain of €48 million from the sale of a subsidiary to a connected group company.
Operating profits in 2018 declined by 10 per cent from €37.6 million to €33.9 million.
French car tech giant Valeo purchased Connaught Electronic in 2007, where it has become a hub for camera technology, integral to the development of autonomous vehicles.
Employment at Valeo has been rising as Research & Development (R&D) expenditiure accelerates. The numbers employed increased to 1,097 from 1,022 in 2018 as R&D spend increased by 25.5 per cent to €69.8 million. At the end of 2018, the company had 466 engaged in R&D.
