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The ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ of Adelaide’s Annual Report for 2021 has today been tabled in South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n Parliament.

The ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥â€™s 2021 Annual Report can be found here.

Legislation prevents South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥â€™s universities from releasing their full annual reports until they are tabled in Parliament.

2021 financial results

The ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ operating surplus was $201 million for 2021 (compared with a surplus of $40 million in 2020).

The 2021 operating surplus included a number of large one-off items:

• $11 million of "restricted use" donations and bequests which have been added to the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ Endowment Fund;
• $37 million of unrealised gains on the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥â€™s tied Endowment Fund;
• $60 million of tied research funding from the Federal Government to support the establishment of the South ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n ImmunoGENomics Cancer Institute (SAiGENCI); and
• $42 million of once off tied Research Support Program funding from the Commonwealth Government to assist with mitigating the impact of COVID-19. $21 million of this funding remains unspent at the end of 2021 and is committed to projects to be completed in 2022.

Excluding the impact of these one-off items, the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ is reporting a 2021 underlying surplus of $71 million compared to $8 million in 2020.

Student Revenue and Research Block Grants are projected to reduce by over $70 million this year, which will significantly impact the financial performance of the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ for a number of years to come.

The ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥â€™s results for 2021 are better than expected, like many other ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n universities. There are several reasons behind this, including:

• A one-off increase in research block grant amounts from the Federal Government;
• A strong stock market, which has led to increased investment returns on our endowments;
• Our ability to retain international students at a higher than expected rate during 2020 and 2021; and
• The significant savings measures we have implemented over the last 12 months.

Whilst the 2021 results are positive, the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥â€™s forecasts indicate that 2022 and beyond are likely to be much more challenging. There is still considerable uncertainty around international markets, and the fall in enrolments and commencements the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ has experienced will have an impact over the coming years. The global financial situation continues to be uncertain, which is affecting the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥n stock market, and the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ will need to take into account the effect of rising costs and inflation.

Ultimately, the ÐÓ°ÉÖ±²¥ will need to reserve this surplus to help support its education and research efforts over the next few challenging years.