May & Baker Nigeria Plc recently released its audited report and accounts for the year ended December 31, 2012, indicating that total sales rose by 17 per cent to about N6 billion.
Key extracts of the audited report, which was prepared and approved in compliance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), showed that turnover continued to rise on the back of recent expansion.
Total sales closed 2012 at N5.7 billion as against N4.8 billion recorded in 2011. Gross profit also increased from N1.9 billion in 2011 to N2.1 billion in 2012. Profit for the year stood at N75.9 million in 2012.
Commenting on the performance of the company, Nnamdi Okafor, managing director, May & Baker Nigeria Plc, said the company expects better results in 2013 based on increased output from its new multi-billion naira world-class pharmaceutical manufacturing plan and ongoing business restructuring efforts.
He added that expected improvement in the business environment that could result from positive developments in the resolution of the country’s security challenges, would give the company unhindered nationwide access to market her products and consolidate its performance.
According to him, the company also expects to reduce finance costs as a result of a recent access to soft loan provided by the chairman of the board of directors, which is expected to significantly raise the profitability of the company in 2013.
He pointed out that its world-class new plant, otherwise known as The PharmaCentre, has raised May & Baker’s production capacity by over 60 per cent noting that it was a landmark investment in the pharmaceutical sector targeted at making Nigeria one of the leading producers of quality medicines in the world.
“The PharmaCentre is currently undergoing the process for World Health Organisation (WHO) pre-qualification which will make her products to be internationally accepted, a situation no Nigerian pharmaceutical company currently enjoys. The WHO prequalification will help the nation become self-sufficient in the manufacture of essential medicines and invariably have multiplier effects on the economy notable among which will be job creation and increased foreign exchange earnings,” Okafor noted.
He however noted that provisions for depreciation on the over N4 billion new pharmaceutical plant as well huge finance costs, high interest rates and teething challenges with product transfer to the new factory, which severely hampered factory output and revenue realisation also affected the bottom-line in 2012. May & Baker had recorded net profit of N222.2 million in 2011 when depreciation for the new plant had not begun.
Okafor reiterated the commitments of the board and management to creating better shareholder value and returns for all stakeholders.
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