DSR targets 1.5 million tonnes by 2025, pays 40 kobo dividend

FOLLOWING an expansion exercise, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc (DSR) has unveiled a production target of 1.5 million tonnes of refined sugar by the year 2025.

Under the plan, the company hopes to achieve this from locally grown sugarcane that is processed at their own, onsite facilities in locations close to key Nigerian markets, while exploring measures to improve cost efficiency and profitability.

Besides, having recorded a profit after taxation of N11.6billion at the end of the December 31, 2014 financial year, as well as turnover of N95billion, the company approved a dividend payout of 40kobo for every share held by its shareholders.

Chairman of the company, Aliko Dangote, while speaking at the company’s yearly general meeting in Lagos, at the weekend, explained that the expansion exercise of the company will generate more than 100,000 job opportunities in the coming decades.

“We will maximise opportunities to benefit from the extended value chain in sugar production, with fuel ethanol and the generation of electricity from our factories. We believe that our expansion project will generate more than 100,000 job opportunities in the coming decades,”

According to Dangote, it remains the company’s policy to return part of its profits as dividends to shareholders at the end of each business year.

He, however, explained that the dividend pad depends on the company’s financial performance, investment decisions, liquidity levels and banks balances.

“In view of the significant investments required for our backward integration projects, the company is in need of additional funding. As such, the Baird has taken the decision to reduce dividend payment for the year from 60 kobo per share to 40 kobo. This is a transnational situation, requiring our short term sacrifices in order to build for the future, and is necessary for us to maintain prudent capital and liquidity levels to sustain our operations, in tandem with our backward integration projects,” Dangote said.

Speaking on the company’s operations, he said the company had to contend with heightened insecurity in the northeastern Nigeria, along with other consumer oriented businesses.