Displaying items by tag: Results
Lafarge’s Czech sales increase but profit falls
03 July 2018Czech Republic: Lafarge Cement’s sales in Czechia increased by almost 7% to Euro38.2m in 2017 but its profit dropped by 25% to Euro5.9m, according to spokeswoman Milena Hucanova.
Czech construction registered only moderate growth in 2017, which was reflected in the company's sales. Operating profit was comparable with the level from 2016.
"The company's net profit was mainly as a consequence of changes in the volume and appraisal of inventories, higher consumption of carbon credits and the firming up of the Koruna / Euro (exchange) rate after the Czech National Bank’s interventions," said CFO Jan Mencl.
Investments by the company in 2018 are planned to amount to Euro3.8m. Hucanova said that half of this had already been spent on the conversion of an electrostatic precipitator to a baghouse at the company’s Čížkovice plant.
Sephaku Cement earnings expected to fall in 2018
21 June 2018South Africa: Sephaku Cement says that its earnings for its 2018 financial year that ended on 31 March 2018 are expected to fall by up to 40% to US$3m. It has blamed this on a poor start to the year from its cement business, the impact of one-off income from a closure agreement with Sinoma regarding the opening of a new cement plant on the previous year’s results and poor results from its concrete business.
South Africa: PPC’s profit rose due to strong performance in Zimbabwe and Rwanda. Its gross profit rose by 3% year-on-year to US$174m in the financial year that ended on 31 March 2018 from US$169m in the same period in 2017. Its revenue grew by 7% to US$762m from US$715m. However, its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 9% to US$140m from US$153m.
"Our performance has been resilient against the backdrop of challenging economic and political environments in markets in which we operate. While our rest of Africa operations, particularly Zimbabwe and Rwanda, achieved good results, our materials division faced reduced demand and increased competition. Our results have also been impacted by a number of significant abnormal items: corporate action, impairment of Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) operations and restructuring costs,” said chief executive officer (CEO) Johan Claassen.
By region, the group’s sales in South Africa and Botswana fell slightly due to a fall in cement sales volumes of 2 – 3%. Imports rose by 32% although PPC said it was from a low base. Elsewhere in Africa, PPC’s sales volumes rose by over 50% supported by ‘robust’ volume growth in Rwanda and Zimbabwe. The group’s PPC Barnet cement plant in Democratic Republic of Congo was commissioned in November 2017.
PPC’s lime division increased its revenue by 2% to US$59m, with volumes and selling prices similar to 2017. Volumes were constrained by key steel-customer shutdowns and non-extension of a significant contract. Lime's EBITDA contracted by
18% after higher variable costs for maintenance and raw material inputs.
Pakistan: Business activity slowed during the month of Ramadan in Pakistan, with cement demand also affected. In May 2018, domestic cement sales were the slowest seen in the current fiscal year, which runs until the end of June 2018, yet they still rose by 2.4%. When exports, which rose by 41.8%, are also included, the year-on-year change rises to 5.7%.
The All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers’ Association (APCMA) reported that 3.92Mt of cement was sold in May 2018 compared to 3.71Mt in May 2017. Sales in the country's northern region stood at 2.81Mt, compared to 2.8Mt in May 2017. In the south, sales came to 0.67Mt in May 2017, as opposed to 0.59Mt in May 2017. Exports from the northern region were 0.224Mt in May 2018 compared to 0.219Mt in May 2017. From the southern region, exports totalled 0.215Mt compared to just 0.09Mt in May 2017.
Total cement sales in the first 11 months of the 2018 Fiscal Year hit a record high, with 42.92Mt sold, a 14.2% rise year-on-year compared to 37.6Mt in the first 11 months of the 2017 Fiscal Year. The APCMA reported that the national capacity utilisation rate over the 11 months period was 94.7%, beating the previous 93.6% record from 1992-1993.
An APCMA spokesperson said the association anticipated that domestic cement consumption would once again rise after Ramadan, while a continued increase in exports was a welcome sign for the industry. However, he said the major factor behind the rise in exports had been the decline in the value of the Pakistani Rupee against the US Dollar, which greatly improved the competitiveness of cement manufacturers in global markets.
Losses mount at ARM Cement in 2017
04 June 2018Kenya: ARM Cement’s net loss more than doubled to US$55m in 2017 due to poor demand in Kenya and Tanzania. Its sales fell by 32% year-on-year to US$85m from US$127m. Elections in Kenya reduced cement demand, a coal import ban in Tanzania caused production issues at its Tanga cement plant and both countries saw increased competition.
“2017 was the most challenging for the group since the company’s listing on the Nairobi Securities Exchange in 1997. Whilst the management has navigated many business difficulties well in the past, raised capital for expansion, increased net profits and market capitalisation continuously over a 14 year period up to 2015, the challenges of the past year have been unprecedented,” the company said in a statement.
The cement producer says it is undergoing a ‘significant’ review of its current operations, asset base and financing structure to address its problems. It has also been cutting staff benefits as part of its plan to save money.
UK-government investor CDC Group, which holds a 41% stake in the company, has also replaced its board members Ketso Gordhan and Pepe Meijer with Sofia Bianchi and Rohit Anand.
India: Jaiprakash Associates’ sales have nearly halved following the sale of much of its cement business to UltraTech Cement in mid-2017. Its sales dropped to US$1.14bn in the year to the end of March 2018 from US$2.19bn in the same period in 2017. The company said that its annual results were not comparable due to the sale of six integrated cement plants and five grinding plants.
Birla Corporation’s sales rise
17 May 2018India: Birla Corporation has overcome sand supply issues to see its sales and cement volumes rise in its financial year to the end of March 2018. The group overcame a restriction on sand mining in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the first nine months of the year, according to the United News of India. Its sales revenue grew by 19% year-on-year to US$878m from US$736m. Its cement sales volumes rose by 23% to 12.4Mt from 10Mt. Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 14% to US$128m from US$113m.
Brazil: Votorantim’s sales from its cement business have grown due to increased sales volumes in Brail, Turkey, India and Latin America. Higher prices in North America and Europe, Asia and Africa also contributed to the result. Votorantim Cimentos’ sales revenue grew by 11% year-on-year to US$682m in the first half of 2018 from US$613m in the same period in 2017. Local sales in Brazil grew by 13% to US$417m due to concrete and mortar sales. Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 28% to US$65.3m from US$50.8m.
Colombia: Cementos Argos’ sales have fallen due to decreased cement sales volumes in Colombia and the US. It blamed poor weather in the US and a large number of holidays in Colombia for the situation. Its sales revenue dropped by 8.2% year-on-year to US$677m from US$737m. However, its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 2% to US$107m from US$104m.
“The growth of EBITDA throughout all our regions is proof that the strategy we established is beginning to reap the benefits of the best efficiency programme and to focus our initiatives in continuing to provide the best experiences to our clients,” said Juan Esteban Calle, president of Cementos Argos.
Cement sales volumes fell by 4.1% overall to 3.69Mt. Volume drops were noted in Colombia and the US but in the rest of the world they rose by 11%.
Japan: Sumitomo Osaka Cement’s net sales rose by 4.6% year-on-year to US$2.24bn in the financial year that ended on 31 March 2018 from US$2.14bn in the same period of the previous year. It attributed the increase to higher sales volumes of cement. However, its operating income fell by 15.6% to US$92m from US$113 due to higher coal prices. The company said that overall local demand in the country rose by 0.2% to 42Mt during the reporting period. Exports rose by 2.4% to 11.8Mt.