DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS RECORDS N2.61B PROFIT IN Q1

Dangote Flour Mills has recorded a gross profit of N2.61 billion for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012 just as it earned revenue of N13.80 billion in the same period.

The company, in a statement weekend said the management would continue to work hard to deliver improved returns to shareholders in the 2012 financial year.

According to a statement from the management, the company would perform better as the expansion project of the company to enlarge its manufacturing and packaging facilities, which started some years back, is almost complete.

'Dedicated plant for production of our wheat meal brand Alkama and Danvita would soon be ready for commissioning any moment from now.

This would no doubt, tremendously boost our top line growth this year as plans are already in place to massively launch the products and increase the distribution networks to all the hinterland.'

The company has considerably raised its capacity over the past decade in anticipation of soaring demands for bread flour and, more recently, semolina, pasta and noodles.

'Dangote Flour Mills has expanded its manufacturing capacities across the country. The investment is despite the global economic meltdown while direct export into Chad, Cameroon, Niger and the West Coast has kicked off.

The direct export goes on side by side with ongoing indirect export of Dangote Flour products through the activities of middlemen and customers,' he said.

The President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, speaking on the result, said that the company plans to control a major chunk of the 295 million population within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) market, stressing that it remains thoroughly Nigeria-centric, dedicating 80 per cent of its capacity to the domestic market, and the remaining for the region.

Noting that Dangote Flour has invested in ultra-modern technology, with machines that are between three months and nine years, in an industry where equipments are as old as 35 years.

'The ongoing semolina mills of 1,500MT per day will come on stream by the end of the second quarter.