Lafarge Cement, WAPCO Nigeria has declared a N12.1 billion profit after tax for the year ended December 31, 2008. The full year report for the period showed that the turnover increased by 12 per cent from N38 billion posted in 2007 to N43 billion in 2008. There was also 15 per cent increase in operating profit while interest expense decreased by 73 per cent. The profit before tax increased by four per cent from N12.54 billion in 2007 to N13.03 billion in 2008. The retained profit for the year stands at N11.2 billion, being five per cent increase over N10.6 billion retained in 2007, while the company is proposing a dividend payout of 60 kobo per ordinary share.

George Lourandos, managing director of the company, at a recent press briefing, pointed out that “Lafarge, like other companies, had its share of the global recession, which impacted on the company’s performance for 2008.” He noted that “amongst these are gas supply failures that resulted in a total loss of production for 48 to 51 days at the company’s factory sites at Ewekoro and Shagamu.”

Lourandos also observed that for these periods, the company had to depend on expensive imported clinker to keep its business going, adding that this increased the company’s production cost and consequently reduced the company’s bottom line.

Speaking on the company’s expansion plan, Lourandos noted that his company had commenced the construction of a state-of-the-art plant at its Ewekoro site, which would add two million metric tonnes to the company’s current capacity of over two million metric tonnes.

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