Dangote Sugar’s Q1 profit rises by 23%

http://www.punchng.com/business/capital-market/dangote-sugars-q1-profit-rises-by-23/

MAY 13, 2013 BY UDEME EKWERE LEAVE A COMMENT

Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has recorded a 23 per cent rise in its profit after tax for the first quarter ended March 31, 2013.

Its result released to the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Friday showed that the profit, which stood at N2.80bn at the corresponding period of 2012, rose by N65m or 23 per cent to close at N3.45bn in the year under consideration.

The company’s result also showed that gross profit was up by 30.3 per cent or N1.59bn from N5.24bn in March 2012, to N6.83bn, while the revenue rose by 2.2 per cent or N59m to N27.64bn in the period under review.

According to the result, the cash flow from operating activities was up by 26 per cent or N733m from N2.801bn in March 2012, to N3.534bn in the year under consideration.

The company had earlier this year acquired 95 per cent of the issued ordinary share capital of Savannah Sugar Company Limited from Dangote Industries Limited in line with its backward integration plans.

The acquisition became effective in January 2013, having obtained the approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission and other relevant regulatory approvals.

Savannah Sugar Company Limited is involved in the business of growing and milling sugar cane and refining raw sugar to produce refined sugar (finished product) and molasses (by-product).

It is the only operating fully integrated sugar company in Nigeria with 32,000 hectares of land, including 5,200 hectares currently under cultivation and a milling plant with a crushing capacity of 4,000 metric tonnes of cane per day.

The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Abdullahi Sule, explained that the clear vision of the firm was to grow local and international markets.

He added that the company had plans to expand its export horizon beyond Ghana to other African countries.

“We are prospecting other countries across the West African coast. Efforts are in top gear to ensure the refinery expansion projects and the proposed acquisition of Savannah Sugar as part of our backward integration projects are completed this year,” he stated.

Sule explained that as part of the strategies to retain its market leadership and dominant position, the company had been working on a number of backward integration strategies into domestic sugar production and milling business.