29th February, 2024
By Rukayat Adeyemi
The management of Lafarge Africa Plc has said the Profit After Tax(PAT) dropped from N53.647 billion recorded in 2022 to N51,141 billion in 2023, a decline of 4.7 percent.
The Chief Executive Officer of Lafarge, Mr Lolu Alade-Akinyemi, disclosed this in a notification sent to the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) on Thursday in Lagos.
Alade-Akinyemi blamed a higher effective tax rate in 2023 after the expiry of the Pioneer Status Incentive in 2022, coupled with pressures from foreign exchange losses for the decline in profit.
The Lafarge boss stated that the firm’s performance was also largely impacted by spiraling inflation and unprecedented Naira devaluation, with the attendant pressure on energy and supply chain costs.
“In the face of very material FX devaluation losses and higher effective tax rate, our PAT declined Year-on-Year by 4.7 per cent.
“Despite these challenges, we continue to maintain a strong free cash flow position and a strong balance sheet, positioning us for sustainable growth over the medium to long term.
“We are committed to delivering sustainable value to all stakeholders in the coming years, as we have done historically,” he said.
According to him, the company, however, maintained a strong balance sheet position for the year under review with a free cash flow of N109.7 billion and net cash of N142 billion.
Alade-Akinyemi further said that the firm’s Profit Before Tax (PBT) went up by 15.7 per cent Year-on-Year in spite of N21 billion Foreign Exchange losses in 2023.
He noted that the fundamentals of the company’s business remain strong.
The CEO added that in spite of extremely challenging macroeconomic head winds, Lafarge grew its top line by 8.6 per cent.
He said the company also improved its operating margin from 22.6 per cent to 25.3 per cent in the 2023 financial year.
Alade-Akinyemi thanked all the employees and stakeholders of Lafarge Africa for their commitment over the years.
(NAN)