The Tanga-based cement firm said the
sales volume grew up by 21 per cent to 257.92bn/- as a result of export
sales that rose by 55 per cent last year, with pre-tax profit increasing
to 55.93bn/- from 37.08bn/-.
The Tanga Cement acting Chairman, Prof
Samuel Wangwe, said the firm overcome the industry challenges - entry of
new manufacturers and cheap imports - last year to achieve the
milestone sales.
“The sales volume increase marks a
significant milestone for Simba Cement, being the first time the company
sold over one million tonnes of cement in one year,” Prof Wangwe said
in a statement in Dar es Salaam.
He said sales increment and reduction on
maintenance costs was partly responsible for the 26 per cent increase
in the company’s gross profit for the year.
“The overhead costs were
strictly controlled and the company’s operation profit for the year
increased by 34 per cent,” Prof Wangwe said, adding that improved supply
of electricity as compared to last year’s also contributed to the
cement manufacturer’s profitability.
The costs also subdued following the
fact that the firm used merely 1.91 per cent of own power generation
compared to 6.9 per cent of 2011. However, the transport costs declined
aa a result of 50 per cent reduction railway services available.
“This substantially increased
distribution costs as the company had to rely on road transport
increased,” said the acting Chairman.
Tanga Cement is listed on the Dar
es Salaam Stock Exchange where it trades as Simba, with its share price
stagnating at 2,400/- since the beginning of this year.
The announced financial performance is
likely to push up the stock value. “The boards recommends a final
dividend of 55/- per share, bringing to 100/- the accumulated dividend
for the year compared to 86/- of 2011,” said Professor Wangwe.
The board of directors has approved the
construction of the second clinker at the factory mid this year to
increase output in the years ahead and meet demand, getting rid of
imports.
The project, scheduled to be completed in 2015, will increase
clinker production capability by 600,000 tons per year, more than double
the current capacity.
“This additional capacity is expected to
satisfy the consistently high demand for cement from both the local and
export markets,” Prof Wangwe said.
Source: The Daily News, www.dailynews.co.tz, reported by Abduel Elinaza in Dar es Salaam
0 comments :
Post a Comment