Notore’s half-year loss rises to N5.79bn

Notore Chemical Industries plc, one of Nigeria’s leading agribusiness companies, has posted loss after tax (LAT) of N5.79billion in the year ended March 31, 2020, a huge increase from N1.94billion loss it recorded in the corresponding period of 2019.

The company’s results submitted to the Nigerian Stock Exchange shows. Also in the first quarter (Q1) to March 31, it reported N4.37billion loss as against N1.84billion profit as at March 31, 2019.

In H1 2020, its revenue printed at N13.12 billion against N12.68billion in H1 2019. In Q1 2020 the company reported revenue decline of N4.93billion as against N8.36billion in Q1 2019.

Onajite Okoloko, group managing director/CEO, in a statement by the company, said, “The modest growth in revenue is attributable to some improvements in plant reliability derived from the ongoing TAM programme, which has begun to impact positively on plant operations and resulting in some marginal increases in production volume during the period.

“Operating expenses increased by 29 percent to N10.43 billion during the period from N8.05 billion for the corresponding period of 2019H1 due mainly to a combination of increases in production activities, plant repair, and maintenance expenses and the impact of naira devaluation. Operating income for the period was N2.67 billion, a decrease of 42 percent as compared to N4.63 billion in 2019H1.”

According to Okoloko, while the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the attendant measures/restrictions put in place by various governments aimed at halting the further spread of the virus have had a negative impact on businesses globally, the impact of the pandemic on the fertilizer market and Notore in particular, remains minimal, as it operates in the “essential goods” industry.

The Nigerian fertilizer demand is quite robust and is expected to continue to grow considering the Federal Government’s strong and decisive policy focus on agriculture as one of the keys to unlock the diversification of the Nigerian economy. The domestic fertilizer market is yet to reach its full potential as the consumption of fertilizer per hectare of arable land in Nigeria is still far below the 200kg per hectare recommended by Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO),” the statement noted.

Noting that the strategic TAM programme would propel its plant to meet and sustain its nameplate capacity of 500,000MT per annum, the company said, “The TAM programme once completed at the end of Q4 2020 as anticipated, is expected to improve significantly the Plant’s reliability and production output to meet and sustain its 500,000MT per annum design nameplate capacity. Achieving this level of production output will not only lead to significant improvements in the Group and Company cash flows from operations, but also significant increases in revenues annually, thereby returning the Company to profitability post the TAM programme.”