Bermuda-based reinsurance company IPC Holdings has seen its profits soar by $41 million -- or nearly thirteen-fold to $44.2 million for 2000, according to figures released yesterday.

IPC Holdings, the owner of IPC Re Ltd, provides property catastrophe reinsurance and had its bottom line badly hit by the stream of natural disasters in 1999, when it scraped into the black with net income of just $3.2 million.

The company reported operating income, which excludes net realised gains, of $15.7 million or $0.60 per share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2000, compared to an operating loss of $(22.6) million, or $(0.88) per share, for the fourth quarter of 1999.

For the year as a whole, operating income in 2000 was $43.7 million, or $1.71 per share, compared to an operating loss of $(27.1) million, or $(1.04) per share in 1999.

President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Bryce said: "After a fifteen-month period which saw an unprecedented frequency of high severity events, the past six months have seen a return to more normal levels of activity.

"Our results have improved accordingly, and we have seen a return to earlier levels of profitability.'' Mr. Bryce added: "We are pleased to report that improvements in terms and conditions during the January renewal season were marginally better than our expectations, although there is still a ways to go before we could consider such terms to be wholly satisfactory.

"It is apparent that financial security is an increasingly important factor for buyers of reinsurance, and as such, we believe that our continued A plus ratings from both Standard & Poor's and A.M. Best, which reflect our disciplined underwriting approach, are of benefit.

"We are hopeful that during 2001 we will benefit from growth in premiums of between 10 percent to 15 percent, and that claims will remain at levels similar to those of the past six months.'' For the year ended December 31, 2000, gross written premiums were $93.8 million, compared to $97.2 million written in 1999.

For the year ended December 31, 2000, net premiums earned were $87.0 million, compared to $95.0 million earned for the year ended December 31, 1999.

The company said the decline in earned premiums is primarily due to the reduction in reinstatement premiums, which are fully earned when written.

For the year ended December 31, 2000, incurred losses were $53.7 million, compared to $129.4 million for the year ended December 31, 1999.

This significant decrease is due to the much lower amount of insured losses arising from a lower severity of catastrophic events in 2000 compared to 1999.