FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
FINANCIAL CONDITION, CASH FLOWS AND LIQUIDITY
We rely on parliamentary appropriations and the cash generated from commercial operations to fund our operating activities and our capital needs in an environment highly dependent on technology. Specifically, our main sources of liquidity are parliamentary appropriations for operating, capital and working capital requirements, and self-generated revenue such as the sale of advertising on our various platforms. Our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities for the year are summarized below.
Our cash balance at March 31, 2018 was $96.0 million, compared to $131.1 million on March 31, 2017.
Cash Position
| For the year ended March 31 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 2017 | % change | |
| Cash - beginning of the year | 131,062 | 156,465 | (16.2) |
| Changes in the year | |||
| Cash from operating activites | 17,564 | 5,111 | N/M |
| Cash used in financing activities | (55,231) | (57,226) | 3.5 |
| Cash from investing activites | 2,583 | 26,712 | (90.3) |
| Net Change | (35,084) | (25,403) | (38.1) |
| Cash - end of the year | 95,978 | 131,062 | (26.8) |
Cash from operating activities
Cash from operating activities includes cash inflows from our drawdowns of parliamentary appropriations for operating expenditures and working capital.
Cash from operating activities was $17.6 million this year, an increase of $12.5 million compared to last year. Cash from operations is impacted each year by fluctuations in working capital. This increase in cash from operations was due to the availability of additional government funding. Partly offsetting this was a decrease in available cash due to higher advertising receivables following the broadcast of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
Cash used in financing activities
Cash outflows for financing activities were stable at $55.2 million, a decrease of $2.0 million compared to last year. Cash outflows for financing activities presented above relate primarily to the following:
- Interest payments of $22.3 million (2016-2017: $24.6 million);
- Repayments of the Broadcast Centre Trust bonds of $15.5 million (2016-2017: $14.4 million);
- Payments of notes payable of $7.1 million (2016-2017: $6.8 million); and
- Payments to meet obligations under finance leases of $10.3 million (2016-2017: $11.5 million).
Cash from investing activities
Cash from investing activities includes cash from our drawdowns of parliamentary appropriations for capital expenditures.
Investing activities generated cash of $2.6 million this year, compared to $26.7 million in 2016-2017. This reduction is due to new cash outflows this year because we invested in Canada Mortgage Bonds to hold funds for the development of the new Maison de Radio-Canada (MRC) and other operational requirements.
