Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the ADF Group second quarter and first semester results conference call. Also note that this call is being recorded on Thursday, September 10th, 2020. I would like to turn the conference over to Jean-François Boursier, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.
Thank you. Good morning. Welcome to ADF's conference call covering the second quarter and six months ended July 31st, 2020. I will update you on our results, which were disclosed earlier this morning by press release, and then update you on our operations. Please note that some of the issues discussed today may include forward-looking statements. These are documented in ADF Group's management report for the second quarter and six months ended July 31st, 2020, which were filed with SEDAR this morning. Please also consider that although for the moment, the impact of COVID-19 on ADF's operations is limited, the extent to which the virus can have an impact on our results will depend on future developments, which are very uncertain and cannot be predicted at this time, including new information that may emerge regarding the COVID-19 and the measures taken to contain it or address its impact among others.
Revenues for the second quarter stood at CAD 42.5 million compared with CAD 54.1 million last year. Year to date, revenues at CAD 88.3 million were CAD 3 million lower than last year. Although our quarter-over-quarter fabrication hours have increased, the lower revenues can be explained by the lower installation hours based on project execution timing for both quarters ended July 31, 2020 and 2019. Gross margins for the second quarter at 17.4% was 6.8% higher than reported a year ago. Year to date, gross margin stood at 13.9% compared to 12.6% for the six months period ended July 31, 2019. Better pricing, better absorption, and the finalization of some contractual changes explain the quarter-over-quarter margin improvement. At the close of the three months ended July 31, 2020, EBITDA stood at CAD 4.6 million, CAD 1.6 million better than for the corresponding quarter a year ago.
Year to date, EBITDA stood at CAD 7.5 million compared to CAD 6 million a year ago. The increase in gross margins and the lower selling administrative expenses, the latter coming from the lower legal fees associated to last year, third quarter out of court settlement explained these favorable variances. For the quarter ended July 31st, 2020, net earnings stood at CAD 2.1 million or CAD 0.06 per share, basic and diluted, compared with net earnings of CAD 419,000 for the same period a year ago, or CAD 0.01 per share, basic and diluted. For the six-month period ended July 31st, 2020, net earnings stood at CAD 2.2 million or CAD 0.07 per share, basic and diluted compared to CAD 2 million for the six months ended July 31st, 2019, CAD 0.06 per share, basic and diluted.
Besides the elements mentioned before, FX fluctuation had a CAD 1.1 million favorable impact quarter-over-quarter, while the impact was CAD 0.7 million unfavorable when comparing the six months periods ended July 31st, 2020 and 2019. Along with our improved results and following our cash management responsible approach, our working capital liquidities and balance sheet situation also improved. Working capital as of July 31st, 2020, at CAD 35.4 million, was CAD 6.1 million better than its January 31st, 2020, level. Net liquidities at CAD 14.7 million are CAD 23.8 million higher than at January 31st, 2020. Year-to-date, cash flow from operation generated CAD 21.6 million. In light of the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19, we are taking a cautious approach with our liquidities and accordingly are tailoring our CapEx program to the situation with only CAD 0.4 million spent during the six months ended last July 31st.
These operating inflows enable us to reduce the drawn credit facility by CAD 13.1 million and finish the quarter with no amount being drawn from our credit facilities. As mentioned in our first quarter reporting and our July 31st, 2020, MD&A, ADF, like many others, is currently navigating into uncharted waters. As mentioned before, and although the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic as of this date had a limited impact on ADF's operations, we remain abreast of economic developments and trends. Our order backlog stood at CAD 314.5 million as at July 31st, 2020. Although the bidding pipeline is still very active, we are finding that finalizing new contracts is somewhat a bit more challenging, with all parties involved taking more time to better understand the coming months.
Even though we have said this before, we feel it is appropriate to reaffirm that risk management was, is, and will always be of paramount importance for ADF. In these uncertain times, our approach offers us comfort and allows us to face these challenging times with determination. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your interest and confidence in ADF. I will now answer your questions.
Thank you, Mr. Boursier. Ladies and gentlemen, if you do have a question, please press Star followed by one on your touchtone phone. You will hear a three-tone prompt acknowledging your request. Should you wish to withdraw your question, simply press Star followed by two. If you're using a speakerphone, we do ask that you please lift the handset before pressing any keys. Please go ahead and press Star one now if you have a question. Once again, ladies and gentlemen, if you do have any questions at this time, please press star followed by one on your touchtone phone. At this time, Mr. Boursier, we have no questions registered, sir. Please proceed.
Again, I wish to thank you for your interest in ADF Group. Have a nice day.
Thank you, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, this does indeed conclude your conference call for today. Once again, thank you for attending, and at this time, we do ask that you please disconnect your lines.