Italian property services firm Prelios remained in the red in the first quarter of 2013 with a net loss of €18.5 mln versus €24 mln in the same period a year before.

Italian property services firm Prelios remained in the red in the first quarter of 2013 with a net loss of €18.5 mln versus €24 mln in the same period a year before.

Milan-based Prelios said the negative figure was largely a result of financial costs of €11 mln. The firm saw its revenues fall 20% to €26 mln versus €33 mln a year before.

The company, which was spun off from parent group Pirelli two years ago, said the first quarter 'did not show any positive changes against the performance registered in the past year'.

'The macro-economic scenario is, in fact, still characterized by uncertainties,' Prelios noted.

Prelios, which has been posting losses for the past five years, said its board has also approved plans to carry out a €185 mln capital hike which will be partly reserved by businessman Massimo Caputi’s Feidos and its investment partners.

The operation will be carried out by the end of June.

As part of the capital increase, the company will receive at least €100 mln in cash, with the rest coming from the conversion into equity of debt granted by a club of banks including Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo.

The agreement also includes the restructuring of €561 mln of debt partly provided by Pirelli and partly by a consortium of banks including Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo. The loans, which were initially due to mature in 2014 and in 2016, were restructured into €519 mln worth of new loans with a five-, six- and seven-year maturity.