- Two winners emerge in promo
Dangote Cement Plc has announced a Profit Before Tax of N162.90bn for the half year ended June 30, 2020, even as two block makers have emerged winners in its ongoing Spell and Win a million national consumer promo.
According to the unaudited results of the company released on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, the company declared 4.7 per cent profit, higher than N155.49bn in the corresponding period of 2019.
The results indicate a resilient half-year 2020 performance despite the impact of the Coronavirus Disease.
The group revenue went up to N476.9bn, group Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation was N218.1bn representing a 45.7 per cent margin, while Pan-Africa EBITDA was up by 31.6 per cent to N31.5bn – a margin of 21.7 per cent.
The period under review saw the maiden clinker shipment from Nigeria via the Apapa Export Terminal to Senegal in June, while plans are on track to ship more vessels of clinker to West and Central Africa in the second half of 2020.
Group Managing Director, Dangote Cement, Michel Puchercos, said, “I am humbled by the fact that we continue to be in a strong position despite the economic downturn that the world is facing due to COVID-19.
“Although April was greatly impacted by lockdowns and restrictions across our operations, we experienced a strong quarter. We achieved a record high volume and EBITDA margin in pan-Africa of 4.7Mt and 21.7 per cent respectively.
“I am particularly pleased to announce that Dangote Cement shipped its first clinker cargo to Senegal from our new cement terminal in Apapa, Lagos.”
According to him, it has been a long journey for Nigeria, from being one of the largest bulk importers of cement to being self-sufficient in cement production and now an exporter of clinker.
“We are on track to ensure that West and Central Africa are cement and clinker-independent, with Nigeria as the main supply hub. We want to continue developing regional and continental trade among the Economic Community of West African States and beyond.”
On the company’s measures against COVID-19, Puchercos stated, “We are committed to protecting our team members and communities by being fully compliant with health and safety measures.
“We remain focused on adapting to the rapidly evolving markets in which we operate. We continue to deploy our efforts to maintain our cost competitiveness, while ensuring that our balance sheet is resilient,” he said.
