Shareholders of Dangote Refinery Plc on Wednesday approved the N6 billion dividend proposed by the board for the year ended December 31, 2015. The dividend, which translated to 50 kobo per share, was approved at the 10th annual general meeting (AGM) held in Lagos.
The dividend is 48 per cent of the profit after tax (PAT) recorded for the year. The shareholders commended DSR for the performance and dividend payment despite the challenges in the operating environment.
For instance, the Chairman, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) Boniface Okezie described the management of the company as having foresight and making giant strides in back integration. According to him, DSR has remained the foremost sugar refinery in Nigeria and continued to add value to shareholders.
Speaking in the same vein, another shareholder, Mr. Patrick Ajudua, noted that DSR has continued to sustain its production despite economic challenges in the country.
Addressing the shareholders, Chairman of DSR, Alhaji Aliko Dangote said 2015 was a very challenging year as the political transition and economic slowdown impacted consumer spending and the global oversupply of crude oil weakened the naira, leaving an average Nigerian consumer with less purchasing power than in the past three to four years.
“In spite of this we achieved a Group turnover of N101 billion in 2015, seven per cent higher than the turnover of N95 billion in 2014. Profit before tax NPBT) stood at N16 billion and Profit after tax at N15 billion. Our earnings before interest tax depreciation and armortisation (EBITDA) rose to N21 billion compared to N18 billion in the previous year,” he said.
According to him, DSR remains committed to delivering superior returns to its shareholders hence the board recommended a total dividend pay-out of N6 billion.
Speaking on the future prospects, the acting Managing Director of DSR, Abdullahi Sule said 2016 commenced on a good footing as the company continued to increase its market share and implementing various initiatives and projects towards the actualisation of its target within the next five years.
“Achievement of the backward integration projects (BIP) targets remains our priority, and this will eliminate our reliance on foreign exchange as well as volatility of raw sugar prices, the highest single driver of our production cost,” Sule said.
