BUA Cement Plc, managed by Nigeria’s third richest man, Abdul Samad Rabiu, reported mixed financial performance for the first half of the fiscal year 2024.
According to the company’s unaudited financial filings for the six months ended June 30, 2024, revenue increased significantly and topped $220 million.
Revenue increased by 64.6%, from N221.1 billion ($133.9 million) in the first half of 2023 to N363.94 billion ($221.1 million) in the same period of 2024. However, growing energy costs had a considerable impact on the company’s expenses.
Energy expenses increased from N47.91 billion ($29.1 million) to N130.1 billion ($78.7 million), bringing the total direct costs for the period to N254.6 billion ($154 million), up from N114.94 billion ($70 million) in H1 2023.
Despite a small increase in gross profit from N106.12 billion ($64.3 million) to N109.29 billion ($66.2 million), the company’s net profit decreased significantly.
Its profit after tax decreased from N63.62 billion ($38.4 million) in the first half of 2023 to N34.25 billion ($20.7 million) in the first half of 2024, owing mostly to foreign currency losses of N39.8 billion ($24 million).
BUA Cement, Nigeria’s second-largest cement producer and a vital subsidiary of the BUA Group, continues to play an important role in the industrial sector. Rabiu, who owns 97.67 percent of BUA Cement, is one of Africa’s richest billionaires, with $5.2 billion.
Despite the profit reduction, BUA Cement’s retained earnings and shareholder equity increased significantly. Retained earnings increased from N169.5 billion ($102.6 million) on Dec. 31, 2023 to N203.7 billion ($123.2 million) on June 30, 2024.
The shareholders’ equity increased from N385.2 billion ($232.9 million) to N419.5 billion ($253.8 million). The total assets rose from N1.22 trillion ($738.1 million) to N1.45 trillion ($877.3 million).
