Razgulay ups IFRS earnings 13% to 13 bln rubles in H1
MOSCOW. 2 Dec (Interfax) - The Razgulay agrifood group boosted first-half earnings to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 13% to 13 billion rubles from 11.5 billion rubles for the corresponding half of 2008, the company reported.
H1 net losses doubled to 1 billion rubles from 500 million rubles in the first half of last year.
These figures, as with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), do not take into account sales profits the group made in 2008. Razgulay's EBITDA for the first half came to 1.4 billion rubles, down from 1.5 billion rubles last year. Gross profits were up at 4.2 billion rubles from 3.5 billion rubles for H1 2008.
Increased sales volume, sugar prices averaging 35% higher, and lower sale prices for grain all impacted earnings, the company said, while the rise in net losses reflected increased financial expenditures.
The group was able to avoid expanding its loan portfolio while financing its sowing campaign to the tune of 3 billion rubles, and also spending 5 billion rubles on raw materials for processing and its business operations. Debt-servicing cost the group 1.5 billion rubles during H1, while investments took another 800 million rubles.
Razgulay put 172 million rubles into upgrading its grain subholding, 148 million rubles improving its sugar plants, 250 million rubles purchasing agricultural equipment, and 66 million rubles acquiring shares. This allowed the group to boost product quality, expanding grain production and distribution 15-20%, and to increase sugar output 14.5%.
Razgulay's grain subholding sold 1.376 million tonnes of product in the first half, an 80% year-on-year increase (from 741,000 tonnes). Grain exports quadrupled to 521,000 tonnes and trade within Russia increased to 635,000 tonnes of grain (394,000 tonnes in H1 2008)
The group's sugar subholding sold 197,000 tones of product over the first half (184,000 tonnes in H1 2008). Sales of the larger profit-margin sugar beet sugar rose 73% to 135,000 tonnes, while sugarcane sugar sales dropped to 14,000 tonnes (62,000 tonnes in H1 2008).
The company harvested 1.45 million tonnes of sugar beet from 318,000 overall hectares of producing land (135,000 tonnes from 232,000 hectares a year earlier), 569,000 tonnes of grains and edible-oils crops (518,000 tonnes), and 132,000 tonnes of raw rice (95,000 tonnes).
The company also reported that it had sold 1.098 million tonnes of grains in January-October this year (up 9% year-on-year), and 300,000 tonnes of sugar beet sugar (up 14%). Sugar production was up 10% at 360,000 tonnes, while that of cereals was flat at 255,000 tonnes.